Fading Dawn
by LJlashlarue
Summary: Part 3 of "The Dawning of Faith" series. Parts 1 and two may be found by searching my username. Dawn is attacked, Faith and the others will stop at nothing to save her. Violence and language, sexual situations. Warnings by chapter.
1. Chapter 1

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title: "Fading Dawn" Chapter 1 'Relationships'<p>

Pairing: Faith/Dawn, Buffy/Willow, mixtures thereof, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Summary: Mr. and Mrs. Blake begin. So does some other stuff.

Warnings: References to what some would consider incest. Language  
>Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon<p>

A/N: This is the sequel to "Fruition", part 2 of 'The Dawning of Faith' universe. I decided to rework it to include more of what was hinted at in the last story concerning the very complex relationship between Buffy, Dawn, Faith, and Willow. It is not going to be very pr0ny, but if the thought of Buffy/Dawn squicks you, skip this one. Other warnings by chapter.

'Fading Dawn'

Chapter One

"Relationships"

"Stand still, Ricky, honestly," Lisa sighed in exasperation as she tried to tie Blake's bowtie.

"This rig is worse than a straight jacket," he muttered.

"Look, boss, in less than a half-hour you are going to have a slayer of your very own, to have and to hold from this day forward. Quit whining like a fucking bitch and let me make you presentable, okay?" Blake grinned sheepishly.

"You're right, Lisa. For Amanda I should be able to stand still if you were nailing the thing on. I guess I'm just a little nervous, truth to tell," he admitted.

"I'm honored, don't get me wrong," Lisa said as she started over, "but why on earth did you pick me to be your 'best man'? Why not Rupert, or Dr. Hough?"

"Rupert's doing the music, Hough is a colleague, and a good doc, but we aren't really close. Lisa, you're one of my oldest friends. You've put up with me for years, and you're the finest nurse I've ever heard of. Fuck, you really _are_ the best man I know, even if you are knocked up," he said with a grin. Lisa's eyes flooded with emotion, as did Blake's.

"Thanks Ricky," she said hoarsely.

"You're welcome, thank you too. Now let's get back to picking on each other before I start crying. I'm gonna have enough trouble getting through the ceremony as it is."

"Thank you for coming, Barry," Giles greeted his old friend.

"Glad to help out, Rupert. Where is the lovely Mrs. Giles?"

"Stuffing William into his tux. He's normally quite well behaved, but I suppose that no six year old likes formal wear."

"I did when I was six, but I was cool then too. Where's my chorus?" Barry asked.

"Come on then, they're well rehearsed, never fear," Giles lead the way down the hall to his office, where several slayers were waiting, all dressed in blood red choral robes. "Girls, meet Barry White. Barry - Renata, Ryuki, Candace, and Leanne," Giles said as he identified the women.

"Charmed, ladies," Barry greeted them. "Let's run through it a time or two, shall we?"

They had seen Barry White before when he came to sing with Giles at the club, but actually singing with him was another thing entirely, and they were the least bit nervous.

That only lasted until they started singing, however.

"Outstanding!" Barry said when they had finished. "Damn, Rupert, I might have to steal these ladies from you."

"No poaching, Barry," Giles cautioned him.

"Relax, I was only funning," Barry said, throwing his arm around Gile's shoulders and heading over to the bar. _"Call me,"_ he mouthed over his shoulder to the slayers.

"How come you get to put the garter on her?" Buffy asked Dawn.

"Because I'm the one who told her she was a slayer," Dawn said reasonably as she slid the garter up Amanda's leg.

"That's high enough, Dawn," Amanda said as she jumped a little.

"Sorry, force of habit," Dawn replied slyly.

"Too late now, Dawnie," Faith told her, "you should have felt her up earlier."

"Maybe you could wear more than one garter," Willow said hopefully.

"Thanks you guys, I appreciate the thoughts," Amanda told them all, "I just hope I don't sweat through the dress. I've been less scared in nest fights."

"Don't you dare!" Buffy commanded. "At least not until after the pictures. God, but that dress is beautiful!"

It really was, it had been made for Amanda by Vera Wang, and it was an absolute miracle of handmade lace and satin. The train was embroidered with red roses that matched her bouquet. Otherwise it was so white that it was hard to look at.

"Five minutes," Kennedy announced, sticking her head into the room.

"Deep breaths, Mandy," Buffy advised.

"Time," Kennedy announced, and Amanda made her way through the French doors and started down the long red carpet leading to the arbor set up in Dr. Blake's back yard. As soon as she appeared, Giles began to play, and the gentle melody carried through the early evening air as Amanda followed her matrons of honor to where Ricky, Rachel, and Lisa stood waiting for her. The guests gasped at the sight of her, and Dr. Blake was too busy grinning and crying silently to be nervous.

"Here, Ricky," Lisa whispered, handing him a handkerchief, "nose…"

William followed Amanda solemnly, carefully balancing the velvet cushion holding the two rings, trailed discretely by his proud and watchful mother. All of the slayers, as well as Buffy and Willow, were dressed in black tuxedos, except for the four in the chorus, and all of them other than the members of the wedding party lined the pathway holding their scythes at port arms.

It was a singularly impressive sight, but Amanda only had eyes for the man about to become her husband.

Buffy, Faith, Dawn, and Willow moved to the side, and Amanda stepped up beside Richard.

Giles began to sing the song that he had been playing.

_He is now to be among you at the calling of your hearts,  
>Rest assured this troubadour is acting on His part.<em>_**  
><strong>__The union of your spirits, here, has caused Him to remain,  
>For whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name,<br>There is Love,  
>there is Love.<br>__**  
><strong>__Well a man shall leave his mother and a woman leave her home.  
>They shall travel on to where the two shall be as one.<br>As it was in the beginning is now and til the end,  
>Woman draws her life from man and gives it back again.<br>And there is Love,  
>there is Love.<em>

_Well then what's to be the reason for becoming man and wife?  
>Is it love that brings you here or love that brings you life?<br>For if loving is the answer, then who's the giving for?  
>Do you believe in something that you've never seen before?<br>Oh there is Love,  
>there is Love.<em>

_Oh the marriage of your spirits here has caused Him to remain.  
>For whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name<br>There is Love,  
>there is Love. <em>

Giles set aside his guitar and stood smiling before them.

"Dearly beloved…" he began.

An ordination was one of the many things Giles had done in his life, just in case. It had also turned out that both Amanda and Ricky had rather traditional views on wedding ceremonies, though there would be no nonsense about 'obeying' mentioned.

However…

"Who gives this woman to this man?" Giles asked.

"We do," chorused Buffy, Dawn, Faith and Willow. (Amanda was a "slayer orphan" her father had died when she was young, and her mother had simply been unable to deal with Amanda being a slayer. Here was all the family she had, or needed.)

"Who gives this man to this woman?" (Okay, not all _that_ traditional, perhaps.)

"Me," said Rachel clearly. "Take good care of him, okay, Mandy?"

"I promise," Amanda assured her.

"The rings," Giles called, and William stepped up with the pillow. Amanda and Richard took the rings, and Amanda bent over and kissed William on the cheek. The blushing young man walked solemnly over to his proud mother.

"I gotta pee," William announced loudly.

This had been anticipated, and the nearby pool house was pressed into service while the company waited politely.

"Do you, Richard Blake, take Amanda Clark to be your wedded wife…"

"I do," Amanda said through her tears.

"By the power vested in me…"

"You may kiss your wife."

The happy couple turned together up the aisle, and the band began to play –

"_Never,never gonna give ya up"_ sang Barry White, and the Slayer chorus backed him as Richard and Amanda Blake walked up the aisle beneath the crossed scythes of the slayers.

The reception was simple but elegant, and the food was of course first rate. Also abundant, since the majority of the guests were slayers.

"Here you go, boss," said Doctor Chastity Petty as she handed Blake a set of keys.

"Really?" he asked in wonder as he recognized the keys to Barney.

"Yup. Just remember that he's a hemi, not some shrieking Italian techno motor," Chastity cautioned him.

"Sure, sure," Ricky said excitedly. Chastity winked at Amanda, and leaned close to her to whisper to her.

"_You're gonna love Barney, promise."_

They weren't going far, in any case. Their real honeymoon was in a few weeks, in France. They were at last going to race Lemans, in the Bitch v2.0.

"Weddings make me cry," Dawn admitted to Buffy.

"Yeah, me too. This was a good one though," Buffy replied. She looked around to be sure no one was in sight before she pressed her lips to Dawn's. "Our turn tonight?" she said as the kiss broke.

"Uh huh," Dawn confirmed.

"Have I thanked you and Willow properly for getting the four of us together?"

"Not yet, but you can thank me later," Dawn promised, and she sucked gently on Buffy's lower lip.

"You always know what to do," Buffy whispered as she shivered.

"Why wouldn't I? I'm you."

"Oh. Yeah. Time to go back to the party," Buffy said, "but I look forward to me."

"Nest call, Buff," Kennedy announced when Buffy and Dawn rejoined the party.

"How many and where?"

"Four, at Oak Ridge. Simonson mausoleum," Kennedy told her.

"You know that place, right, Dawn?"

"Like the back of my hand," Dawn allowed.

"Who's on site?" Buffy asked.

"Megan and Sheila."

"Okay, they're sharp, if they say four then four it is. I'll just go in with the team, no need to spoil anyone else's fun," Buffy decided. "You seen Faith and Willow?"

"They're over at the punch. You sure you don't want another couple teams?"

"Yeah, if it looks bad Dawn will just get us out of there. I don't want to rain on Amanda's parade if I can help it," Buffy told her.

"Nice of you. Damn, but she looked good in that dress, didn't she?" Kennedy asked.

"You waited too long too, huh Ken?" teased Dawn.

"Nope. I got there first," Kennedy said smugly, "but I guess I just didn't have what it takes for Mandy."

"Yeah, see you later Kennedy," said Buffy as she dragged Dawn away.

"Did she really-"

"None of our business, Dawnie. Game face."

"What up, B?" Faith said, noticing the expression on Buffy and Dawn's faces.

"Little nest at Oak Ridge, shouldn't take too long. Why don't you grab our scythes while I go make our excuses to Ricky and Amanda?"

"Done," Faith agreed.

"We have a little nest to deal with," Buffy explained to the Blakes. "No big deal, but if you guys leave before we get back, just know that we love you and are very happy for you."

"Thank you, Buffy. I'll never be able to repay what I owe to you and the other slayers," Blake told her.

"I like to think we're fairly even," Buffy countered, and she kissed then each on the cheek before hurrying to join the rest of her team.

"Ricky," Amanda said coyly.

"Yes, Mrs. Blake?"

"Mama's horny…"

The nest team had scarcely disappeared when the night was shattered by the sound of Barney bellowing down the drive. Amanda was used to precisely balanced, sophisticated, and exotic engines. The raw and visceral power of the huge engine was something new to her, as was the deep and throbbing vibration in the old seats.

Chastity had been right. Amanda _loved_ Barney.

Dawn seldom needed to tank up from Willow any longer; she was so intimately connected to the stream now that her power was not that much less than Willow's. Also she had decided that porting several people need not take that much more power than porting one if she thought of them all together as single unit. Because she was an Avatar, her believing it made it so, if only for her.

The hapless vampires at Oak Ridge had a brief treat before Dawn simply sent them everywhere. Two slayers and two witches clad in elegant tuxedos just wasn't something you saw every day. Dawn decided to do the honors and so spare their fancy duds the dust.

"You're amazing," declared Willow when it was done, and she kissed Dawn thoroughly.

"Incredible," Faith agreed, and she kissed Dawn as well.

"I'm awesome," Buffy observed as she took her turn.

"_Well, well, well,"_ thought the figure watching from the shadows, just before it turned to mist. 

**A/N: **"The Wedding Song" by Paul Stookey. "Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up" by Barry White. Barry White appears by gall.


	2. Chapter 2

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title: "Fading Dawn"<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Richard Blake, others  
>Rating: PG 13 this chapter<p>

Summary: Amanda and Ricky finally make the big show, accompanied by a Slayer pit crew and the trouble that never seems to go away

Warnings: none  
>Word Count:1600<p>

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter Two

"Stung"

"Driver change time coming up Mandy, how do you feel?" Richard Blake asked over the radio.

"Great, Ricky," Amanda replied, "I'd just as soon finish out if you don't mind, the Bitch and I are on the same page now."

Blake heaved a sigh of relief, he was damn tired, and he well knew that Amanda would have no trouble finishing the race. Besides, she was faster than he was, and he wanted to win.

"Slam the door on them, baby," he encouraged, "I love you."

"Me you too," replied Amanda as she braked hard for the hairpin, sliding by the factory Audi in the process.

The Audi factory drivers had learned respect for the black Ferrari the hard way, especially when Amanda was its pilot. Early in the race one of the very expensive diesel prototypes had crashed trying to follow her through a technical section. From then on, the mighty Audis had yielded to the GT1 car in the technical sections, as the Bitch moved aside on Mulsanne for the faster cars. The Audi drivers were not particularly happy about it, but there wasn't anything else they could do and not crash.

"Your wife is a brilliant driver, Ricky; do you think she'd be interested in Formula 1?"

"Feel free to ask her Michel, but I don't think she has the time. She has to get back to work in a couple days," Blake answered.

"Your wife works? Whatever for?" Michel asked in confusion.

"It's more of a calling, actually," Blake explained to Michel. Michel was head of Ferrari's Formula 1 team, and a friend of Blake's. It was Michel's influence that had gotten both versions of the Bitch built, along with Richard Blake's money, of course.

"What does she do?" Michel asked.

"Pray you never find out," Blake answered, watching Amanda blaze past the pits.

"Richard, do you realize that she is on the same lap as the lead Audi?" Michel asked him.

"What? How is that possible? The mileage advantage those diesels have should prevent that," Blake asked.

"The prototypes have all suffered damage trying to keep up with her in the tight sections, all of them have gone off-course at one time or another and have had to spend time in the pits. Your car has performed flawlessly."

"We're going to need fuel and tires one more time," Blake mused.

"So will they, they skipped the last scheduled stop in order to try and build a lead, but Amanda has caught them up."

"Time for homespun strategy then," Blake said with a gleam in his eye. "Mandy, how's things?" he asked.

"Great, but I'm gonna need to come in once more before the end," she replied.

"Make that twice," Blake countered, "here's what we're gonna do…"

At the entry to Mulsanne, Amanda moved over and gave the faster car room to pass, but she slid right in behind it, less than a foot away. The Audi pilot wondered why he was a tad slow on the straight, but even when his crew told him, there was nothing he could do about it.

The drafting threw off the fuel calculations for the Audi, increasing the consumption in its effort to pull away from the Ferrari that was tucked in behind it. For Amanda, the fuel consumption decreased, and the speed increased, but the engine was spinning well past design limits.

It was a gamble, but not the only one they would make.

"Come in next lap," Ricky told her.

"I've got gas for ten more," Amanda protested.

"Yeah, you do, and I want you to do them on new tires. The Audi is slowing, he's not any faster than you right now, and he'll pit when he has to and get tires and fuel. We're gonna throw 4 tires on without gas and send you back out as quickly as we can. I think you can get most of a lap on him before they realize what's happening, are you game?" Blake asked.

"Sounds like a plan, see you soon."

"Girls, let's see how fast you can change four tires, okay?" Blake asked his pit crew.

"Sounds like fun," Faith answered, "I've got an idea."

Faith, Kennedy, Renata, and Ryuki swarmed over the wall, Faith and Kennedy each carrying two tires. The jacks lifted the car and Ryuki and Renata slapped the knockoffs on the fronts, tossed the old tires over the wall and then moved to the back. Faith and Kennedy each moved to a front wheel, rolled one tire towards the back and then slapped on the front and slammed home the nut. Ryuki and Renata had the rears off when the tires arrived, and pounded them in place. All four slayers were back over the wall with the old tires in less time than it takes to tell it.

It was so fast that almost no one noticed it, and it was assumed that some sort of glitch in the pits had sent the black car out again so quickly. Confident now, the Audi pit crew relaxed a little. Meanwhile Amanda got busy.

"Come on girl, just hold together, okay?" she asked her car as she attacked the course.

By the time she had to come in for gas, she was up by nearly an entire lap. When she pulled in, Faith had the hose in place before the car had settled down, and Amanda still held the lead when she pulled out of the pits.

It was mostly mathematics now. The Audi was once again faster with its new tires, and pulled closer on every lap, but for the Blakes it was just a matter of not breaking down, now. The Audi gained about 3 seconds per lap and was looming in Amanda's mirror on the final straight.

"Just a little more, baby," coaxed Amanda as the tachometer scanned deep into the red, and the Bitch obligingly held together as they took the flag.

A stunned Audi team manager came over during the cooldown lap and offered his congratulations, which Blake graciously accepted. Michel, however, could not suppress a snicker. It had been a while since the rampant colt had pranced into the winner's circle here, and stepchild or no, the Bitch had been born in Maranello.

Blake tilted his head and listened as Amanda pulled into the pits with the checkered flag hanging out the window. The car sounded fine to him, and he sent a silent thanks to the wizard in Florida for his work.

Then Amanda was climbing from the car and he had no further thoughts for anyone but her.

"Mandy, you were amazing!" Blake cried as he swept her up into his arms.

"Thanks baby, but it was our girl here that did it! Bless her evil little heart."

"She did good, yeah," he admitted, "and so did your pit crew, there was never a tire change like that! Come on girls," he said to the slayers standing nearby, "it's time for your champagne shower!"

"I suppose that will do for a start," Amanda allowed, wrinkling her nose, "but I really stink."

"That's the smell of victory in an endurance race, sweetheart," Blake assured her, "but there's a nice shower and a big hot tub waiting for you back at the house. Let's go watch the losers pretend not to be pissed off." He took her hand and headed for the podium.

A gust of wind stirred the debris by the transporters, and Dawn emerged from between two large trucks and looked around for Faith. She caught sight of her with the rest of the team, and moved to join her.

Faith felt eyes on her, and looked over her shoulder and saw Dawn approaching. The smile that lit her face was the one that only came out for Dawn, and she hurried over to her.

"We won! Can you believe that shit? We actually won!" Faith exclaimed.

"Well of course we did, I never doubted it," Dawn assured her, "sorry I couldn't get here earlier, but we got a nest call from one of the field teams."

"Everything go okay?"

"Yes, it was slower without you, and Buffy was a little unhappy with the way a couple Slayers performed." Faith's face grew concerned. "Nothing dangerous," Dawn hastened to add, "just not what she's used to with the first team. You're kind of hard to replace, not to mention Ryuki, Amanda, Renata, and Kennedy."

"Let's not mention them then," Faith requested as she took Dawn into her arms and kissed her.

"Hey Faith," called Kennedy, "come get your champagne shower!"

"Go ahead, love," Dawn encouraged her, "get drenched in the stuff, I'll find some way to clean you up after." Dawn took Faith's lower lip between her teeth and tugged lightly. "Shoo, finish up here and I'll take us home."

"Don't you wanna stay for the party?" Faith asked her. "It should be a blast."

"If it means something to you, of course I'll stay, but all I really want just now is you. I've missed you, and so have the cherry trees. Not to mention Buffy and Willow." Faith felt a familiar warmth spreading through her; their house had a small courtyard much like the one at Yoshi's, where they had first given their bodies freely to one another, and it occurred to Faith that all she really wanted just now was to be beneath those branches with Dawn. Of course, if Buffy and Willow wanted to play too…

"Gimme a minute," Faith said, and she ran to join her teammates for the photos.

Dawn scarcely felt the sting as the tiny dart struck her neck.


	3. Chapter 3

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title: "Fading Dawn"<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG13<p>

Summary: Terror and rage

Warnings: mild language  
>Word Count:1800<p>

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon, except for the ones that don't

"_Fading Dawn"_

_Chapter 3_

"_Cold_"

"Ricky, Amanda, thanks for letting me play, I had a ball. And Mandy, you were amazing, I'll never pick on your driving again," Faith told them. "You guys have fun at the party, Dawnie's here to take me home."

"Gonna have a little party of your own, huh Faith?" Amanda asked with a knowing grin.

"That's the idea; you can load the Bitch up okay without me, right? I don't want to leave you hanging."

"Faith, honey," Ricky said, and he kissed her brow, "four Slayers can load that carbon fiber missile just fine. Go have fun; I'm sure three days away from Dawn seemed like a month."

"Only when I had time to think about it; later guys," and with that Faith was running to the trucks.

She saw a crumpled form on the ground by the transporters and redoubled her efforts, seconds later she carefully laid her hand on Dawn's throat and heaved a huge sigh of relief when she felt her pulse and saw her breathing.

_"RICKY!"_, she screamed, and in a matter of moments Dr. Blake was there, having arrived via Slayer express. Amanda had one arm and Kennedy the other, and they had carried him to Faith's side much faster than he could have arrived on his own feet. Blake would have enjoyed the ride if not for the fear that had been plain in Faith's scream.

"What happened?" he asked as he peeled back an eyelid and reached for the penlight that was always in his pocket.

"I don't know, I ran back here and found her like this. I didn't see or hear anything. What's wrong with her?"

"I don't know yet, there is no obvious injury, and I don't see any blood… ahh," he breathed as his fingers found the tiny metal projectile and pulled it free. "Mandy, get me something clean to put this in," he said as he showed the dart to Faith. By then Ryuki and Renata had arrived.

"Sweep the area," Faith commanded, "if it looks hinky, grab it. Hell, grab it anyway; nobody much should be here right now."

"On it," Kennedy promised and she, Ryuki, and Renata fanned out into the night.

"She seems stable," Blake told Faith, "her pupils react okay, and her pulse and respiration are fine. Hell, it's like she's just sleeping. There's a decent hospital nearby. We'll get her there and I can start finding out what's up with her. You'd better call Buffy, though, she'll want to get on the first flight she can, I know she'll want to be with Dawn. I need to call Rachel and tell her not to expect us at the party, too."

Faith opened her cell and hit the speed dial. Faith started talking as soon as Buffy answered, interrupting her greeting.

"Dawn has been attacked, Buff, some kind of drugged dart. She's unconscious but stable and Ricky is taking her to a hospital near here. No, I don't know who or what, Kennedy has a team sweeping the area now. Get here as soon as you can, okay? I'll have Amanda text you the address of the place… yeah, you try not to worry too. Thank God Ricky's here. Bye."

"If I wasn't here this wouldn't have happened," Blake said slowly, "none of us would be here if I hadn't wanted to show off."

"None of that shit, Ricky, we don't have time for it. Come on; tell me where to take her." Faith stood with Dawn cradled in her arms, and Blake shook off his guilt. Faith was right; there was no time for it. Amanda arrived with a clean jar and the track ambulance; they loaded Dawn in the back. Faith and Blake climbed in with her. The track medics all knew him, and let him take charge. "Send Buffy the hospital address, would you Mandy?" he said as the doors closed.

"On it," replied Amanda as her fingers blurred on the keypad. The app the Slayers used also transmitted GPS coordinates with each address so that Dawn could know where to port the nest team. There would be no teleporting this time, but the data would prove useful all the same.

"Dammit, the first flight doesn't leave for three hours, and it has _four_ fucking connections," Buffy fumed.

"Wrong," countered Willow as she entered the study, "the flight leaves _now_, and it's definitely an express."

Willow's eyes were jet black, and her personal breeze was at full force, scattering any loose bits of paper in the room.

"Are you sure about this, Willow? It won't be precisely discreet," Giles asked hesitantly.

"Don't care. Audra just called; Leticia says that Dawn's signature in the stream is fading. Something is cutting off her power, trying to separate her from the stream."

"Great," spat Buffy, "a magic-sucking vampire. Like we needed another kind."

"I doubt that it's a vampire," Willow told her, "this has witchcraft written all over it. The dark kind. _My_ kind. And I have to say that I'm taking this personally. As I matter of fact, I am well and truly pissed off." Willow smiled, and Giles felt a trickle of ice water run down his spine.

"Willow-" he began, but she cut him off.

"No worries Giles, I'm a Goddess, not a demon, I know right from wrong. Audra has contacted a magical healer to help Ricky with Dawn. She's supposed to be the best there is."

"You and Rona can hold down the fort, right Giles?" Buffy asked.

"Certainly, don't worry about a thing, just take care of Dawn, and do give my love to her and Faith when you arrive. If you need any assistance at all, call anytime," Giles assured her.

"At least I don't have to figure out how to get this through security," Buffy said as she picked up the scythe, there was a brief puff of air, and Willow handed her Dawn's weapon as well.

"That's for when we find whoever did this," Willow explained. "We'll call when we get there, Giles."

Buffy and Willow hurried outside, and an instant later the house rocked in a strong wind, and a few branches snapped on the surrounding trees. Giles looked out his window and saw what looked like a ball of lightning disappearing into the sky.

"Is Aunt Willow angry, papa?" asked William.

"Yes, son, I'm afraid that she is," Giles answered.

"Somebody's gonna get it," the boy stated, shaking his head.

"You are absolutely correct, William, someone most assuredly is. Let's find Mummy and tell her the news then, shall we?" William took him by the hand, and Giles was pleased that his own was not trembling. Not much, anyway.

Weather stations on both sides of the Atlantic recorded an unknown phenomenon that had many of the characteristics of a hurricane. It was eventually dismissed as a software glitch in the linked systems because it was too small, not even fifty meters across, and was moving far, far, too fast. Rumors began circulating about experimental aircraft.

Dawn was settled in a room, and the equipment painted a reassuring picture of her body's functions. She would not however, wake up.

"I don't want to try any drugs to wake her," Dr. Blake explained to an extremely worried Faith. "She doesn't seem to be in any danger physically, she's perfect except for being asleep. And this really is sleep, not unconsciousness. I don't get it," he admitted.

"Not what I really wanted to hear," Faith admitted, "but as long as she's alive I'll deal."

"I'm sorry Faith, I feel like I've let you down," Blake told her.

"Stop that shit, you're doing the best you can, and I know that's the best there is. This is something different, that's all. And different is part of the job description. Giles said that our friends at the coven in England are sending some kind of witch doctor; make that a doctor who is also a witch, to help. All I want is for Dawnie to be okay. Well, that and the chance to kill whoever or whatever did this."

"Right there with you kid," Blake said as he took her in his arms.

The situation was so serious that Amanda didn't even make a crack about Faith hugging her husband as she entered the room.

"How's our girl?" she asked.

"Stable, but sleeping," Blake answered, "Faith is kind of pissed off. Me too, come down to it."

"There's a lot of that going around," Amanda agreed, "Buffy and Willow are on the way, we can expect bad weather soon."

"Good," Faith replied, "once they get here we can handle whatever did this, no matter what the hell it is. I just wish we knew what was _wrong!_."

"Well, here's the witch for that job, apparently," Amanda said as she held out her phone towards Faith, "Audra sent a picture of her so we wouldn't accidentally cut her head off or something."

"Smart girl, Audra," allowed Faith, "pretty good looking doctor, she's a witch too, huh?"

"Audra says she's exceptional. She's not Wiccan though; she's the old-fashioned kind, even flies a broom."

"Huh," said Faith, "if she can fix Dawnie up I'll buy her a vacuum, introduce her to the jet age."

A tremendous clap of thunder sounded, and the lights flickered briefly.

"Mandy, you and the others better clear the way, Buffy and Willow aren't likely to stand on protocol, hospital or no," Blake urged. Amanda was already on her way.

Buffy handed Dawn's scythe to Faith as she entered the room, and went straight to Dawn's side without pausing.

"Your hair's a mess, Buff," Faith commented.

"The pilot put the top down," Buffy explained. "She looks like she's asleep," she said as she cast a practiced eye over the various monitors. Buffy knew her way around a hospital room.

"She is," Blake assured her, "and the tox screen on her blood came back negative. I'm running them all again, everything there is to run, but I don't think this is something in my field, exactly."

"Where is the thing you found in Dawn's neck?" Willow asked, and Blake handed her the bottle. Willow examined it closely, sniffing it. "There is magic here, for sure, but it's not precisely like anything I've seen before. Maybe the specialist that Audra is sending will know more." Willow went to Dawn's side and laid a hand on her forehead, a faint blue light appeared where their skin met. "Something is cutting her off from the stream, disconnecting her… it's kind of like the technique that Dawn used when she went to get Giles back, but longer lasting. Whatever witch or wizard did this is very skilled in more than one type of magic."

"Do you think you can handle them when we find them?" Buffy asked.

Willow smiled, and the water in the glass by Dawn's bed froze in an instant.


	4. Chapter 4

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 4<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R for language and rather extreme violence<p>

Summary: One clue is found, and the Pro from Dover arrives

Warnings: Character death, violence and language  
>Word Count: 2200<p>

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon

Author's notes following text.

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 4

"Under Pressure"

Ryuki paused and let the sounds and smells of the night communicate with her. She had been following a faint trail for some time now, and she sensed that she was close. _There_, a tiny sound of leather scraping on pavement.

She leaped over the stack of shipping cartons awaiting pickup and confronted the person she had tracked from the area where Dawn had been attacked.

"Please don't hurt me!" the man exclaimed, and he held up a white cane.

"Save your breath, if you were blind you wouldn't have known how to hide from me," Ryuki responded. "Come on, you have a small chance of surviving this if you cooperate with us."

"Fuck you, bitch," he replied as he sent a powerful kick at her head. He was quite skilled, but Ryuki was a master. She was also a Slayer; the kick never landed, and he never saw the move that rendered him unconscious. Ryuki picked up his cane, tossed him over one delicate-seeming shoulder, and opened her phone.

"Speak," Faith said as she answered Ryuki's call. "Well, well, that _is_ interesting. Take him to the transporter; we'll be there as soon as we can. Good work, Chimeiteki Kusabana – San, and thank you."

"So what did our fatal flower have to say?" Buffy asked.

"She tracked someone away from the scene of the attack; it turned out to be somebody pretending to be blind. He tried to fight his way clear," Faith answered.

"Is he dead?" Blake inquired in a hopeful tone.

"Not yet, she was careful. I figure the Bitch's trailer is as good a place as any for a little chat. Who wants to play?" Faith asked grimly.

"I'm in," Willow volunteered, "somebody has to be able to keep you from killing him too soon. Besides, I can use my feminine wiles to trick him into talking."

Lightning flickered from her fingertips, and Faith grinned. Blake suppressed a shudder. He loved these women like his own daughter, but sometimes…

"I'll stay here with Dawn," Buffy told them, "I'm sure the two of you and Ryuki can handle this, and I know better than to try and keep you out of it, Faith."

"You really _are_ smart, Buff. Guess that's why you're the boss. We'll be back as soon as we can." Faith went and kissed Dawn's lips tenderly. "Stay with us love," she whispered, "stay with _me_, please."

"Let's go," she snapped, and she and Willow hurried from the room.

Dawn stirred a bit in her sleep, but did not wake.

"Show me," Faith said when she and Willow entered the trailer. Ryuki handed her the white cane.

"There was a rubber cap on one end and a metal cap on the other. It doesn't collapse like some of them do, and the inside of it is polished like a jewel," Ryuki told them.

"Blowgun," Faith supplied, "looks like he's our boy all right. How bad is he hurt?"

"Not bad, he'll have a nasty bruise on his leg, but beyond that I just choked him out a little to calm him down. He's probably awake now. He seems to like to pretend." Ryuki shrugged.

"Time for a talk, sunshine," Faith said brightly.

The man did not respond, and Faith glanced at Willow.

"Wakey, wakey," Willow singsonged, and sparks flew from where she touched his neck.

"Jesus Christ!" he screamed as he jerked away from her touch.

"He ain't here," Faith informed him. "Tell us about the dart you stuck my girl with."

"Dart? Girl? What are you talking about? Okay, I'm a con man; I come to these big events and act like I'm blind to scam money. So call the police, but you can't just beat me up and torture me."

"You're wrong there," Faith promised. "Once more, tell me about the dart. I know a weapon when I see one, and I've seen plenty of blowguns."

"Fuck you, bitch," he said again, and then he made a show of firmly closing his mouth.

"He says that a lot," Ryuki informed them, "I am certain that I could improve his vocabulary."

"Let me try," Willow suggested, and her hair stirred as she extended her hand towards his cheek. The man flinched away from it. "Oh, don't worry, no shocky, I'm just going to show you a little video of someone else who harmed someone that I loved, okay?"

Well it wasn't really a question, and he surely wasn't going anywhere, and Willow smiled sweetly at him as she fed the images of the last minutes of Warren Mears' life into his mind. When she removed her hand he was trembling in a puddle of his own urine. Faith gently took his hand.

"Scary, isn't she? Don't worry; I won't let her hurt you," Faith told him softly. The pressure of Faith's grip increased and his eyes grew round in pain and renewed fear. "I'll just sit here and protect you from the mean old witch until you feel up to answering my questions, okay? Won't that be nice?"

He could feel his knuckles grating together, and as impossible as it seemed, the pressure kept increasing with no sign of letting up.

"Okay! Okay, I'll tell you all I know, but it's not much."

"I really hope that is not true, for your sake," Ryuki told him in her musical voice.

The puddle got larger.

"I was hired to do a job, that's all. I got a letter in one of my drop boxes telling me where to go and pick up a package. The cane and the dart were in there, along with a picture of the target and some instructions, and fifty grand in cash. The instructions said to be here at the end of the race and hang around Blake's team in case she showed up. She showed up, I did what I was paid to do. End of story."

"Where's the letter?" Faith asked.

"Burned i- Ahhh!"

A soft crunching sound could be heard beneath the choked scream.

"It's at my place! I've got a motor home parked nearby; I'll give it to you!"

"Yes you will," agreed Faith. "Now let's hear the rest of it. How and where are you supposed to pick up the rest of your money?"

"It was all in advance, that's the way I wor- AAhhh!"

"I can squeeze a _lot_ harder," Faith promised, "and you've got lots more breakable parts. Now quit screwing around, I'm losing my patience."

"Me too," Willow advised, "and I'm also getting bored," she said casually as she played with a ball of fire.

"You wouldn't like her when she's bored," Faith whispered.

"I'm to go to a restaurant tomorrow morning at nine local time; the instructions said that if the job was done that the final payment would be taped underneath the table in the third booth from the rear, on the left side as you enter. That's all I know, I swear it!"

"Fine, come on then, let's go." Faith kept hold of his hand and threw one arm around him in a friendly manner. Ryuki and Willow followed them to the large RV.

"Nice," commented Faith, "killing people must pay good."

The man wisely remained silent, and Faith allowed him to slowly get his keys from his pocket and open the door. The RV park was deserted, everyone was at the parties, it seemed.

"It's all in the safe under the coffee table. Shall I open it?"

"Sure. Do I need to tell you to be careful?" Faith asked.

"No."

"Then go ahead." He did, and he soon held out an envelope to her. "Just put it on the table," she told him. "Now then, is there anything else you ought to tell me? Think hard now; you don't want to miss anything."

"No! I swear, that's all, please don't let her skin me! I didn't know what the fuck I was getting into. What the hell _are_ you people, anyway?"

"The little redhead is a witch. Me and Ryuki are Slayers."

"Well then I believe in witches now, but I don't know what a Slayer is and I don't want to know any more about them. I thought that one was a ninja the way she tracked me and took me down, that's the only training I know of that could teach her how to do that."

"Oh, I am a ninja," Ryuki informed him, "and so is Sumizome Shishi –Sama."

"You're _her_? Oh, shit… look, I can see I'm in way over my head here. I've given you everything, that's all I know, really."

"Yuki?" questioned Faith.

"He is telling the truth; that is all that he knows."

"I think so too," Willow agreed.

"Okay, one of you find a bag or something to put that envelope in while I figure out what to do with sunshine, here."

Willow went into the kitchen and started opening drawers.

"I don't suppose you'd consider letting me go?"

"Not likely," Faith admitted, "the woman you shot is my partner, and if she doesn't recover completely I am going to crush every bone in your body, starting with the one between your legs," she said calmly.

He thought that his body had hidden his good hand as it slipped beneath the couch he was leaning against. It hadn't, both Faith and Ryuki knew what he was up to, but it would not have made the slightest difference if had he managed to surprise them.

The gun had barely cleared the couch when Ryuki's foot broke his wrist and sent the weapon flying, and he felt an enormous pressure on his chest. As his vision faded he saw Faith holding a bloody, pulsing, mass in her hand.

"_I thought that was a myth, well I'll be da-"_

"Here's the bag. I'll take out the trash," Willow said, and the vehicle shuddered as the corpse vanished, along with the gun and the bloody rug.

"I didn't think you could 'port people," Faith remarked.

"I can't," Willow said, and she shrugged, "I have no idea what just landed in the ocean, but the fish will eat it anyway."

"There is nothing else of interest here that I can see," Ryuki told them.

"Then let's get back to Dawn," Faith decreed. They left as anonymously as they had arrived, and the RV was towed a few days later.

The police were unable to discover anything at all about the registered owner. It was as if he had never existed.

"The guy Ryuki caught was a hired gun. Pretty pricy one at that," Faith told them all back in Dawn's room. "He told us all he knew, and it was no more than you'd expect from someone like that, but we do know where he was supposed to go to pick up the rest of his money. If we stake the place out now we might be able to catch whoever makes the drop. They aren't going to leave fifty grand unattended for very long."

"Nothing about what's going on with Dawn?" Blake asked.

"No, the weapon was given to him, all he knew was how to use a blowgun and where and when to look for Dawn. Whoever is behind this might have been trying for a while, even. There's just no way that anybody could have been sure that Dawn would show up here," Willow answered him.

"Are we sure we can trust this specialist Audra is sending?" Buffy asked the group.

"Yes," Willow replied, "Audra knows how important Dawn is, and to more than just us. She wouldn't send anyone she wasn't certain of." Buffy nodded.

"We need to get set up around that restaurant, who's going?" Faith asked.

"Willow should be there in case the witch, or wizard, or whatever the hell did this magic shows up, but I guess that's not likely. Ryuki should go in case some tracking needs to be done, I say everybody but Amanda. She can handle security here, along with whichever one of us stays, what do you think?" Buffy responded.

"You're right, at least one of us should be with Dawn when the witch doctor gets here," Faith answered her, gently stroking Dawn's hair.

"She's here," announced a crisp British voice. "Move."

"She sounds like you," Faith said to Blake as she stepped aside. All of the Slayers found that comforting. "Ryuki, take everybody but Amanda and set up on the restaurant. Willow and I will be there after we talk with the Doc."

"Done, come on ladies," she said, and Renata and Kennedy left with her. Amanda stood just outside the door.

The doctor in question cast a practiced eye over the monitors, laid her fingers on Dawn's neck, and then pulled up an eyelid.

"She's asleep," the woman pronounced.

"Yep," Blake confirmed. "Tox screens are negative for all organic and artificial agents so far. This is what did it." He handed her the jar containing the dart, and she opened the jar and sniffed.

"Hmmm," she muttered to herself, and then she pulled a slender piece of wood from her sleeve and waved it over the top of the jar, a green glow surrounded the tiny missile.

"Right then, you are Doctor Blake, correct?" she asked, and he admitted it. "I read your paper on cryotherapy in trauma treatment, it was brilliant."

"Thank you, Doctor…?"

"Granger, Hermione Granger."

Obviously this is now a crossover, and with the next update I will move it to the proper category. I wanted it to be a bit of a surprise. Of course the Harry Potter characters belong to JK Rowling. I do hope no one is disappointed by their appearance, the story will however remain strongly "Buffy" centered.


	5. Chapter 5

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 5<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG13 this one<p>

Summary: More help arrives

Warnings: None beyond title page  
>Word Count: 2400<p>

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JK Rowling

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 5

"Taking Heart"

"You can stop looking for a toxin, there isn't one," Doctor Granger told Blake. "This was a spell."

"A spell?" Willow questioned. "On a _dart_?"

"Yes, I recognize parts of the magical signature. This was developed by an evil wizard who called himself Lord Voldemort. He used the technique to create single-use wands that allowed enslaved muggles, that is non-magical humans, to perform deadly curses. Or indeed anyone with insufficient power or inclination to perform them, he was every kind of a bastard, but a very advanced wizard."

"So this "Voldemort" did this to Dawn?" asked Faith.

"No, he's been dead for some time, but this does mean that one of his former followers is somehow involved," Dr. Granger explained. "If we can find the witch or wizard responsible, it might be possible to reverse the effects. I know how to do it in theory, but it involves very dark magic. Black magic; blood magic; and exceptionally powerful magic. There is also a taint to this dart that I am unfamiliar with, almost like some pagan God. I have no idea where to get the sort of power needed to combat this, even though I have the knowledge of how to do it," she admitted.

"No problem," Willow promised as the black veins streaked her face, "no problem at all…"

Dr. Granger stared at Willow, and hesitantly reached out and touched her face. A shudder went through her frame, and a sigh escaped her slightly parted lips.

"Forgive me," she said, "Audra told me about you, but nothing that she said prepared me for the experience. Your power is unlike anything I have ever known, so wild and violent, and yet you control it. _Fascinating_…" she whispered as her fingers traced the veins on Willow's face and neck.

"Yo, Doc, she's mine," Buffy informed her.

"What? Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"That's okay Doctor Granger," Willow told her as she allowed the veins to fade, "sometimes we share, and if you can fix up Dawn I can pretty well promise you that."

"Right…" Dr. Granger said, and she returned to Dawn's side. "So this is our Avatar… she's younger than I expected." Dr. Granger passed her wand slowly over Dawn's body, and an occasional flicker of green sparkled beneath it. "Absolutely fascinating…" she whispered. Faith cleared her throat. "I know, she's yours, Audra told me. Apparently I have set off everyone's gaydar. If it will set all of your minds at ease, I can tell you that I have someone of my own," Dr. Granger explained. "The magical power here is different to me, and it is very compelling, and while I do admit that Willow and Dawn are very attractive, please believe that it is the magic that has me a little unsettled. Here, this one is mine."

Doctor Granger reached into her bag and pulled out a small photograph and handed it to Faith. Faith's eyes went round, and she wordlessly handed the picture to Willow, who gasped and handed it to Buffy.

"I do want it back," Dr. Granger cautioned. "Faith, I need to get contact with her skin, please don't hurt me."

"No worries, Doc. Hell, if you can bring her back to me, I'll kick in with Buff and Willow."

"That's tempting, to be sure, but let's take care of her first." Doctor Granger loosed the tie on the gown at Dawn's neck, and laid her palm over Dawn's heart. Long minutes passed. "I could wake her," Dr. Granger announced, "but it would be a bad idea. Dawn is doing this to protect herself. Her magic is different from mine, different even from Willow's, though I know that Willow trained her."

"What do you mean, Doctor Granger?" Willow asked.

"Hermione, please, I expect that we are going to be spending quite a lot of time together, and if we are to save her we will all be needed. And we _must_ save her, she is precious. There have been so few Avatars, and none other for a thousand years. The spell is attempting to sever Dawn's connection with the stream that flows through all things. My power comes from within myself, it was born within me, and so I can see what Willow cannot. Willow's power is that of the Gods, and though she is indeed in the stream and can gather strength from it, she is yet apart from it. Dawn _is_ the stream. She is a key figure for magic itself, and when I say that Dawn is protecting herself I mean also that the stream is protecting her. Magic _itself_, is protecting her. So long as she sleeps, the spell can progress only very slowly."

"Who would do such a thing?" Willow asked.

"Perhaps the larger question is, who _could_ do such a thing, there is someone involved in this that is extremely powerful." Hermione answered. "Other than Dawn or Willow, I mean," she added as she recalled feeling Willow's power.

"And the first step is to find out who hired sunshine," Faith declared. "Thank you Hermione, anything you need, anything you want, I'll get it for you. Now and forever, and that goes for your perfect blonde partner too. Come on Willow, we've got ass to kick."

Faith and Willow departed.

"So the key thing is to keep Dawn's body alive, right?" Blake asked Hermione.

"Yes, the spell will not harm her physically, but the integrity of her body is important. She is unique."

"You got that right," Buffy agreed, "so we don't need to stay here?"

"No," Hermione said, "the important thing is to protect her until we can reverse this spell. We cannot dismiss the chance that there might be an attack on her physical being."

"The safest place I can think of is the Slayer Hilton. The infirmary there is more than adequate for this, and nothing can get to her there. Nothing corporeal, anyway, and I'm sure Hermione can help with the other stuff, right?" Blake asked.

"I'll do my best," Hermione assured him, "but we're going to need her close by when you find whoever cast this spell. And I have to warn you that the counterspell is the very darkest sort of magic."

"How dark?" Buffy asked.

"I never imagined that I would be a part of something like this," Hermione said slowly, "but I cannot bear not to do everything in my power to save this woman. Whoever cast this spell must die, for their heart is the key ingredient of the counterspell. Can you do that?" she asked Buffy.

"We can. So you think we need to keep her here, then?"

"Well, not _here_ specifically, but if the witch or wizard responsible for what happened to Dawn happens to be killed outright rather than captured, then it would be well not to have the sea between them. There will not be much time."

"And without Dawn we can't teleport… Ricky, do you have any ideas?"

"I could buy a house, I guess, but it might take time to find a suitable one. How long are we talking about, Hermione?" he asked.

"Less than an hour I'm afraid, and cooling the heart won't extend that time. It's a magical limitation, not a physical one. I do have a suggestion though. My partner and I have a place in a secluded location here in France, and the magical protections are quite strong. I also do research there, so some of the needed equipment is in place. You are welcome to use it, if you like," she offered.

"Ricky?" Buffy asked.

"I think it's the best alternative, we'll need some privacy once Faith catches up to whoever did this. How do we get there, Hermione?"

"I'll arrange that, Apparition doesn't have the range and power of teleportation, certainly not the way an Avatar can do it, but it will serve well enough for this. No one will see her being moved, and that might be an advantage as well," Hermione answered him.

"I'll call Giles and get some reinforcements coming," Buffy said, opening her phone, "maybe they'll have better luck with flights than I did."

"Son of a bitch!" said Blake bitterly. "Blake, you are one stupid mother fucker. Damn!"

"Ricky?" queried Amanda, leaning into the room.

"Tell Giles I'll charter a plane, I just need to know how big. That way there won't be as much trouble with equipment, either. I hope Giles still has contacts that can handle customs. I should have thought of that for you and Willow, Buffy, I'm sorry," Blake said bitterly.

"Don't beat yourself up, Ricky, "Air Willow" was faster than that would have been. You took care of Dawn, and that was the most important thing," Buffy assured him.

"Excuse me, but did I understand that you might be bringing in some equipment that would raise a few eyebrows at customs?" Hermione asked.

"Yes, things like this," Buffy said, and she opened the case that hid the scythe from view.

"I see. I believe that my partner might be able to help with that sort of thing, shall I ask her?"

"Can she keep a secret?" Buffy asked.

"Well, we've been together a good while now, and I still don't really know what her job is. She has weapons sort of like that one, though, and I know that she has been involved with transporting things by conventional aircraft."

"I'll take all the help I can get, thanks," Buffy told her. Hermione pulled a mirror from her bag, stepped away from Buffy and Blake, and spoke quietly.

"She seems to know what she's doing," Buffy told Blake.

"Yeah she does, and if she read that paper of mine she at least tries to stay current. I can't find out anything about the witch stuff, but I had Amanda send a text to my office, and I'm checking on the rest of her. If that checks out, and I believe that it will, then I think we can trust her with the other stuff too."

"I hope so, it's not like we have much choice," Buffy muttered as she looked worriedly at Dawn.

"She will arrive in a few moments," Hermione said as she rejoined them, "it would be best if you stood over by Dawn so that she has a clear space to arrive in. She is very skilled in Apparition, but better safe than sorry."

"Should I open the window?" Buffy asked.

"No need," Hermione assured her, "this magic does not displace air as teleportation does. Or as I'm told that it does, I've never seen true teleportation involving a human."

"After this is over Dawnie will show you how it's done," Buffy promised, and she and Blake went and stood against the wall by Dawn's bed.

"Apparition is not silent, I for-" Hermione's explanation was interrupted by a sharp crack of sound, and a woman appeared suddenly in the room. Amanda reacted instantly to the noise, and before anyone had time to speak, her fist was headed towards the newcomer's neck. Amanda and Buffy were both quite surprised when the woman neatly parried the blow and stepped aside, obviously prepared to continue the discussion.

"Stop!" Buffy commanded, and Amanda instantly took a step back. She and the new arrival regarded each other warily.

"I did not expect such an enzuiastic greeting, 'Ermione," admitted the woman that Buffy now recognized as Hermione's partner.

"I'm sorry, I didn't warn them about Apparition in time," Hermione explained. "Buffy, Richard, this is my partner, Gabrielle. Gabi, Buffy Summers, Dr. Richard Blake, and… I'm sorry, I didn't get your name."

"Amanda Blake, pleased to meet you. Nice block, by the way."

"Zank you, but I 'ad little choice, zat blow would 'ave 'urt," Gabrielle admitted.

"I don't understand why some men think two women fighting is hot," Blake announced, "that scared the hell out of me."

Buffy walked over and offered her hand to Gabrielle, "Sorry about that, we're all a little on edge right now." Gabrielle shrugged and smiled as she took Buffy's hand in hers.

"I didn't like it much myself," agreed Hermione, "but no one was hurt, and we all know each other now. Gabi, can you help us here?"

"Oui, zere is an airfield zat we sometimes use, I 'ave zee necessary transponder codes. Zee plane should file a flight plan for Orly initially. Zee details are in 'zis document. If your pilot follows zese procedures zee plane will be safe from both Muggle forces and our own until it lands."

"I know about the 'Muggle' forces, but what would you guys do to an unauthorized aircraft?" Buffy asked curiously.

"Normally zey are transfigured into a flock of geese," Gabrielle informed her.

"What becomes of the passengers and crew?" Amanda asked, and Gabrielle shrugged.

"Zey become whatever is usually inside a goose, I suppose. It does not 'appen often."

"Faith is going to _love_ her," Ricky said, shaking his head.

"Thank you, Gabrielle," Buffy said in relief, "some of our stuff just won't get through customs, and without Dawn our options are limited right now."

"Equipment like zat?" Gabrielle asked, pointing at the open case in the corner.

"Oopsie, I should have closed that," Buffy admitted, "but yes."

"Magnifique, I would like to handle zis weapon sometime, but zis is not zee place. When do we move 'er to our house?"

"I should tell Faith where we're going, first," Buffy answered, "I shudder to think what might happen if she came back here and Dawn was gone."

"That might be bad, yes," Blake agreed.

"Should we move before the other Slayers arrive?" Amanda asked. "Here at least we know the ground, and until Faith finishes up there are only two of us to protect Dawn."

"I can 'elp wiz zat," Gabrielle promised, "also, our house has very powerful magical protection, and 'Ermione is not precisely 'elpless."

"We can wait here for Faith if you like, Buffy," Hermione suggested.

Buffy looked at Dawn, then at Hermione, then at Blake, and tears started in her eyes.

"Excuse me," she said, struggling to control her emotions, "this is all just a little much right this second."

Hermione drew Buffy into a hug.

"We'll find a way;" she said softly, "whoever did this seriously underestimated the consequences, and the quality of the opposition, and they forgot that there is magic quite apart from their own."


	6. Chapter 6

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title: "Fading Dawn" Chapter 6<p>

Pairing: Faith/Dawn, Buffy/Willow, Ricky/Amanda, others  
>Rating: PG-13<p>

Summary: A familiar face shows up

Warnings: none  
>Word Count:1300<p>

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JK Rowling

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 6

"Old Fiends"

"The restaurant opens in fifteen minutes," Faith informed the Slayers when she and Willow arrived, "have you seen any sign of activity?"

"Just the staff arriving as far as we could tell, it's a small place and we counted five going in. I suppose someone could have arrived before we did, but there was no sign of forced entry," Ryuki answered.

"Good. Renata, you speak French don't you?"

"Oui, un petit peu," she replied.

"I'll take that as a yes; as soon as they open grab a booth at the back. Here's a newspaper I swiped from the hospital. Settle in and order enough to eat to keep them from getting pissed off. When somebody comes in to plant the stuff, follow them out and put the finger on them. We'll grab them and split. Any questions?" Faith asked when she had finished her instructions.

"Where do we take them?" Kennedy wanted to know.

"The trailer I guess, I'll check with Buffy and see what she thinks. We can't let them get away, but they have to be able to talk, remember that, right?"

"Right," they chorused.

"Ryuki, you and Kennedy watch the open side and the back. Renata, just hang around out front waiting for it to open. Willow and I will stay concealed here and cover the front. Let's get it done."

The Slayers moved off, and for an unguarded moment the fear showed on Faith's face.

"We'll get through this," Willow told her, taking Faith in her arms, "Dr. Granger knows what she's doing, and we'll find who and what we need to find."

"Suppose we don't, though?"

"Then we'll all hurt terribly. But that won't happen, and you'll have Buffy and I either way."

"It wouldn't be the same," Faith whispered.

"Not even close," Willow agreed, and she kissed Faith softly on the lips. Faith returned the kiss briefly, and was able after that to shake off her fear. She knew that Willow needed Dawn as much as she did, as Buffy did, and that they would stop at nothing to save her.

There were things that needed doing.

"Dawn is your sister, Buffy?" Hermione asked her. Dr. Granger was once again passing her wand over Dawn's body, checking things that the instruments could not.

"Yes," Buffy answered.

"Then do you mind if I do a scan of you? It might help me to understand the effects of the spell on her."

"Shit, cut off an arm if you think it'll help," Buffy answered.

"I don't think I'll need to go that far," Hermione replied with a smile, "please just lie down on the other bed." Buffy looked anxiously at Dawn.

"I will stay with 'er," Gabrielle promised, and she moved to Dawn's bedside. Buffy quickly lay down on the other bed, and Hermione slowly passed her wand over her.

"Unusual…" muttered Dr. Granger, and Buffy's eyes flickered over to Dr. Blake, who remained silent. "Forgive me Buffy, but from what I see here, Dawn is essentially _you_. Not even a clone, just _you_. I have to admit that I don't understand this."

"Don't feel bad Doc, not many of us do. Here's the story," Buffy said, and she launched into the history of Dawn's existence.

"Remarkable! I've never heard of magic like that, it's simply amazing," Hermione said when Buffy had finished.

"Will it help you any, knowing that?" Buffy asked.

"I believe so, yes," Hermione answered her, "since Dawn is essentially a magical being, meaning a being formed of magic, rather than simply a human with magical powers, it will make the counterspell a little simpler. Heal the magic and the body will take care of itself."

"Does that mean we don't need the heart?"

"I'm afraid not, that's still a critical component, but it does mean that the spell will not have to be tailored to mortal flesh. We can work with pure magic. It will take more power than I have, to be sure, but Willow has enough and to spare. All we need is the witch or wizard responsible."

"What about the pagan god stuff?" Buffy asked.

"They only provided power, not any of the spell itself. We don't need them to break it," Hermione told her.

"No, but we might need to break them," Buffy said with a grim smile.

"Pour encourager les autres, n'est ce pas?" Gabrielle asked with a matching expression.

"I like her," Buffy told Hermione.

"Sometimes we share too," Hermione confided, "you ought to see Gabi's sister. Oh…" Hermione blushed fiercely.

"No worries Doc," Buffy said, patting Hermione's shoulder, "believe me, I understand. So will Dawn and Faith and Willow."

"Yes, well thank you. You can go back to Dawn; I need to consult with Doctor Blake."

"Okay, I don't really get doctor talk anyway; Gabrielle seems to speak my language though. Except for the French stuff, I mean." Buffy went back to Dawn's bedside, and Hermione beckoned Blake out into the hallway.

"What's up, Dr. Granger?" Blake asked her.

"Buffy isn't mortal. Not really. What's going on here?" Blake drew a deep breath.

"I'm not sure, exactly, but it has to do with very old magic," he began. "Hell, maybe you can help me out; I damn sure can't consult any of my usual colleagues on this, except for my partner. Faith is the same way; neither of them has aged a second since I've known them, and likely longer than that. I believe that it has something to do with the spell Willow did to bring forth the potentials."

"Potentials?"

"Ever hear of a Vampire Slayer?"

"She is very beautiful, your sister," Gabrielle said to Buffy.

"Thanks, and yes she is. The parts you can't see are even more beautiful. I don't think I could stand to lose her. I died one time to avoid that."

"Vraiment?" Gabrielle asked.

"Only for a few months. Willow and some others brought me back," Buffy explained. Gabrielle arched an eyebrow, but said nothing.

"That was the first time we tangled with a God. I kicked her ass, but there was this portal…shit, it's kind of a long story."

"We appear to 'ave some time," Gabrielle replied. "I am curious, 'ow do you fight a God?"

"I used a bigass hammer. I'm not sure exactly what Willow did to Osiris, but the other Gods turn pale when they see Willow now. " Gabrielle arched the eyebrow again.

"Swear to God," Buffy said, laying her hand over her heart.

"Let me show you a photo of ma souer," Gabrielle suggested.

The man who unlocked the restaurant door welcomed Renata courteously, and she took a seat at the very back of the room on the side opposite the targeted booth. She ordered coffee and studied the menu.

"Renata is in," Faith said over their radio link, and Kennedy and Ryuki reported that things were clear in their areas. There was an hour before the unlamented assassin was to pick up the balance of his fee, and business was slow

Renata ordered an omelet. It was quite good, as were the croissants that followed.

"Son of a bitch," said Willow suddenly, and Faith turned to her quizzically. "Tell them to standby, I recognized somebody."

"Heads up ladies, we've got a possible," Faith sent to the others.

Renata watched as a man entered the restaurant and sat in the targeted booth. The man ordered espresso, drank it slowly, paid his check, and headed for the door. He had also surreptitiously placed an envelope under the table, and Renata left money for her food on her table, retrieved the envelope, and exited right behind the man. She nodded, and Willow and the slayers fell in trail.

When they passed an alleyway, Renata picked the man up and hustled him into it, dumping him unceremoniously onto a pile of trash. Willow stepped up to the confused fellow and smiled as lightning played from her fingertips.

"Hello Ethan, long time no see." She gestured and blackness descended on him.


	7. Chapter 7

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 7<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R for language and rather extreme violence<p>

Summary:A little chat with an old acquaintance.

Warnings: Character death, violence and language  
>Word Count: 2150<p>

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 7

"Last Straw"

"Hi dad, I made your apologies and explained to our guests about a medical emergency, Michel is filling in as host. I also brought clothes for you and Amanda. How's Dawn?" Rachel announced as she entered the room.

"Stable. Rachel, this is Doctor Hermione Granger, and her partner Gabrielle, ladies, my daughter Rachel," Blake introduced.

"They're witches," Buffy added, "not Willow-witches, the broom kind."

"Oh, pleased to meet you. Where's Renata?"

"She's out with Faith and Willow and the others trying to catch one of the people who hurt Dawn," Blake explained.

"Good, anyway, both of you guys were a little ripe the last time I saw you, so I figured…" she ended with a shrug.

"Thanks baby, I had to clean up before I could go to work on Dawn, and I got a set of scrubs, so I'm fine. I bet Mandy would appreciate a shower though."

"You're not wrong," Amanda called from the doorway.

"Go ahead, Amanda," Buffy told her, "I'm sure we can keep Dawn safe while you shower."

"Thanks boss," Amanda said gratefully, and she took the clothes from Rachel and went into the bathroom. The shower started running in seconds.

"Your wife is a Slayer too?" Hermione asked Blake.

"You bet," he answered.

"Slayer?" Gabrielle asked.

"I'll fill you in later, love. They are a sort of magical creature, very powerful physically," Hermione explained. "Oh, no offense meant with the "creature", Buffy."

"None taken. Frankly, with Dawn in danger the creature part is on top right now anyway."

Buffy's phone rang.

"Yeah? Oh really? That's interesting… do you mind if I take this one? Great, someone will be there soon to pick up the package, and they'll drop you off here on the way. She's the same, sleeping like a baby. Love you too, bye." Buffy ended the call.

"That was Faith, they caught the bag man. Turns out to be an old acquaintance who has caused more than his fair share of trouble over the years," Buffy told them, and then she dialed a number.

_"Yes, Buffy? Is Dawn all right?"_ Giles said when he answered.

"She's okay for the moment. Giles, we ran into an old friend over here who seems to be up to his slimy neck in this business."

"_Oh? Do tell, then."_

"Ethan Rayne."

"_Bastard. It seems that he will never learn. I didn't even know he was out of custody. I'll see if I can find out if he is supposed to be free. We might need to bring him back and turn him over to the authorities."_

"That won't be necessary. We have all the authority we need, right here," Buffy replied. There was a moment of silence on the phone.

"_I trust your judgment, Buffy."_

"Any messages for him?"

"_I can't think of a single thing. Do keep me posted, and I've been in touch with some old acquaintances from the Council. Should you need specialized help it will be available."_

"Thanks, and we've got some pretty special help already. Has the plane left yet?"

"_Only just. I sent six, you've already got several team leaders with you and I thought that would be sufficient. Tell Willow I also sent the book, just in case. That was William's idea, actually."_

"Great, thanks, and six will do it, I'm pretty sure. Tell Rona I have complete confidence in her."

"_I certainly shall. She was rather miffed at having to stay behind, truth to tell."_

"Somebody has to keep the home fires burning. Thanks again."

"_Candace will contact you when they have a firm arrival time, and I shall text you the flight information. Good luck, Buffy."_

"Thanks, bye. Gabrielle, our plane is on the way. Giles is going to send the flight information."

" 'Zat is well, I shall alert my people."

"God that shower felt good," Amanda said as she entered the room dressed in fresh clothes, her hair still wet.

"I need you to go make a pickup. Faith caught someone, take them to the transporter, please, and drop Faith off here on the way back. Do you know where the restaurant is?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah, we ate there the other day. What car did you bring, Rachel?"

"The Cayenne, here," she handed over the keys.

"Excellent, be right back," Amanda took the keys, kissed her husband, and hurried from the room.

"Who is this guy, Buffy?" asked Blake. "You and Giles seem to know him."

"We have a history, yes. He turned Giles into a Fyarl demon once, and I nearly killed him before I realized who he was. This asshole just keeps causing trouble," Buffy explained.

"If 'e 'as committed a crime on French soil, I 'ave jurisdiction," Gabrielle told them, "but 'zis sounds like a personal matter."

"I like her," Buffy said to Ricky.

Dawn tossed about a little, and Buffy was at her side in an instant.

"She's just dreaming, Buffy," Hermione assured her.

"It seems to be a pleasant one," speculated Gabrielle as a flush crept up Dawn's neck.

"I hope it is," Buffy said quietly, and she pressed her cheek to Dawn's and held her.

Amanda picked up Renata in front of the restaurant, and soon had the car backed into the alley. In seconds they had loaded the unconscious Rayne into the back and were on their way to the transporter.

The hi-low sound of the police siren startled them all.

"He can't catch us," Amanda promised.

"No need to stir things up if we don't have to," Faith decided. "Willow, be ready to send this cop to sleep."

Amanda pulled over and rolled her window down, the gendarme approached in the manner of policemen the world around. Fortunately, Renata was up front with Amanda, and she translated the rapid flow of French.

"We were speeding, he wants to see your license and the registration," Renata informed her. Amanda sighed and dug out the documents, wishing she had simply put her foot down.

The gendarme scanned the documents, and his eyes went round. He loosed another torrent of French within which "Amanda Blake" stood out clearly.

"Oui," Renata answered him. The cop popped his heels and bowed as he handed the papers back to Amanda, then he pulled out a pad and offered it to her.

"Great, a ticket," Amanda muttered as she stowed the papers.

"Nope, an autograph," Renata replied with a grin, "make it out to "Gerard", and smile. You're famous!"

Amanda did as instructed, and the smiling policeman accepted his autograph, reached for Amanda's hand, and kissed it. Then he stepped back and said something else, accompanied by many hand gestures.

"He wants you to show him a racing start," Renata explained.

"Love too," Amanda replied, and a couple seconds later the Porsche howled off, leaving the grinning gendarme in a cloud of tire smoke.

The trip to the hospital didn't take long, and Faith and Renata went to Dawn's room. Renata walked straight over to Rachel and hugged her.

"All set, Buff, how's our girl?" Faith asked.

"She's having good dreams; I think I heard your name a couple times. I'll be back as soon as I can." Buffy and Faith hugged briefly, and Buffy ran from the room.

"Amanda has fans on the police force," Faith informed Ricky as she went over to Dawn's bedside.

"Handy. Faith, how about you stretch out on the other bed for a minute and let Doctor Granger do her kind of scan?" Blake asked.

"Sure, what for?"

"I'm trying to better understand the magic that binds you with Buffy, and therefore with Dawn. It might help with the counterspell and any supportive treatment she might need."

"Have at it, Doc. Should I get naked?" Faith asked.

"No need," Hermione explained.

"Tu es bete, cherie," Gabrielle sighed.

"Behave, Gabrielle, this is scarcely the time for flirting."

"Huh?" Faith asked.

"Gabrielle thinks that Doctor Granger should have told you to get undressed," Renata explained.

"Oh. Thanks Gabi, and don't worry Doc, she's just blowing off steam. Sounds like she might have a little slayer in her," Faith replied.

"It's a warrior thing," Blake spoke up, "they handle the tension by acting like horny teenagers."

"It would seem so," Hermione muttered, and she continued her scanning. The wand pulsed green occasionally. "Absolutely incredible," she declared at last.

"What?" Faith asked.

"Your 'magical signature' for want of a better phrase is exactly like Buffy's. Yet you clearly are not related at all, all of the other readings are as different as one would expect between two women from different families. Might I scan one of the other slayers?"

"Sure," Renata said, and she changed places with Faith.

"This is more what I would expect," Doctor Granger informed Doctor Blake. "There is a similarity that I attribute to the "Slayer Factor", but is by no means identical. When the opportunity presents, I should like to check a few others."

"Buffy said six more are on the way. I'm just as curious as you are; I've never been able to get into this with another physician who knew magic. I hope you can help me learn how to care for them better."

"I'm certainly willing to try," Hermione said, glancing over at Faith.

"We'll revisit the whole naked thing once this mess is straightened out," Faith said quietly to Gabrielle.

Gabrielle smiled.

Buffy smiled.

"Hi there, Ethan. You got some 'splainin' to do!"

"Merciful heavens," moaned Rayne.

"I don't think that's where you're going, frankly," Buffy told him. "And if you don't want to find out really soon, you'll tell me everything you know about that money you left, and why you hired that man to attack my sister."

"You won't kill me; you're one of the good guy- _Arrh… Damn it!_"

Buffy handed him his right ear.

"Pay attention, you piece of shit. I am telling you straight that I am not going to fuck around with you. I am more than willing to tear off everything that sticks out unless you tell me everything you know about this, and I mean right this instant. Don't think of lying to me, either. Willow can tell, and if you screw around with me I'll have her take it right out of your head."

"Love to," Willow said, smiling. "Of course, the head won't be good for much of anything afterwards."

The sweat that had begun to pour from Ethan Rayne froze, but his tongue proved to be quite thawed out.

"I was only a middleman! All I did was find a wizard who knew how to embed a spell in an object, and a man willing to use it. I never knew who the target was, I swear it!" Buffy looked at Willow.

"Nope, he's hiding something," Willow told her, all the while making a cat's cradle out of lightning. Rayne swallowed audibly, and Buffy stared at him grimly.

"Last chance, who hired you?"

"I don-" he fell silent when Buffy grabbed his nose.

"Be careful," she cautioned.

"I don't really-"

"Go get it, Willow," Buffy commanded, and Willow's eyes went black. Rayne's eyes rolled back in his head as Willow seized it. Blue lightning surged between her palms, and in seconds Rayne was twitching feebly on the floor of the transporter.

"A witch contacted him," Willow explained, "a Wiccan, not one of Doctor Granger's kind. She was heavily glamoured, there's no way he could identify her. He did know who the target was, though, he lied about that."

"Figures," Buffy said in disgust, "anything else?"

"The name of the assassin, and how he hired him, I guess we can pass that along to Gabrielle." Buffy nodded. "And a name for the wizard who sold him the spell that was used on the dart, not their real name, it's one of those 'street name' things. He wasn't disguised, and I'll know him if I see him. Now he iis/i Doctor Granger's sort."

"Any indication that Rayne was behind it?" Buffy quizzed.

"It wasn't his idea, all he did was to use his contacts to make it possible. He did enjoy the thought of hurting you and Giles, thought it was pretty funny, in fact."

"I'm not laughing," Buffy said coldly. "Is there any chance that he'll recover from this? I am really, really, tired of this asshole."

"I don't think so, I burned his mind pretty badly, but it's magic, so…"

"You all might want to step out of the trailer," Buffy suggested.

"I'll stay, thanks," Kennedy spoke up.

"I will as well," Ryuki agreed.

"Can I do it?" Amanda asked.

"Sorry, but this one is mine. Are you sure there's nothing else to get from him, Willow?"

"Not a thing."

"Have a nice trip, Ethan," Buffy said. There was a brittle, cracking sound, and a moment later the trailer rocked with the surge of teleportation.


	8. Chapter 8

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 8<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating:PG13<p>

Warnings: Hints at incest  
>Word Count: 1100<p>

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 8

"Wanderings and Discoveries"

The instant that the dart had struck Dawn's neck, the stream that runs through all things had taken her into its embrace, seeking to protect the connection that was vital to them both.

Since the first time Dawn had welcomed and been welcomed by the stream, the connection had spread and strengthened, were it to be severed, magic everywhere would be badly damaged.

Dawn was aware of the peril, and yielded to the urgings of the stream, setting herself adrift in it. To her, it seemed as if she were wandering along the banks of a river, pausing on occasion when a memory filled her consciousness. This time it was the memory of Faith declaring her love for Dawn, and it brought tears to her eyes and filled her with joy.

_"Faith…"_, she whispered in her dreams, _"please find me…"_

"I'm right here, baby," whispered Faith as she pressed kisses to Dawn's face, "I'm right here."

"Do you think Faith can hold herself together?" Hermione asked Ricky. "This has to be hell for her."

"Faith knows all about hell," Ricky responded, "and for Dawn she can do almost literally anything. But if we lose Dawn hell will surely break loose. I cannot adequately explain to you just how powerful she and Buffy are. Especially Faith, and most especially when it involves Dawn. Frankly I don't think anyone other than Willow could control her, and even then…"

"May I?" Gabrielle asked Faith quietly, gesturing to a case similar to the one holding Buffy's scythe.

"Sure," Faith answered. There was a gasp from Gabrielle when she opened it and saw the black scythe with the lion on the blade. " 'Zis is yours?" Gabrielle asked.

"Yes. Mine and Dawn's, really, but she has one of her own. I carry the Lion Scythe."

"I 'ave 'eard of zis weapon, but I never 'zought to see it. 'Zen you are Sumizome Shishi – Sama. Master Yoshi told me of you," Gabrielle informed her.

"You know Yoshi? Small world," Faith said looking closer at the French witch. "Did you study with him?"

"Only for the sword, I am no ninja," Gabrielle demurred.

"Maybe not, but if Yoshi consented to teach you, then you're a whole lot more than just eye candy. Did you beat him?" Faith asked with the ghost of a grin.

"Of course not, it was like facing a w'irlwind of steel. But I learned from 'im," Gabrielle declared.

"You must have learned a lot, I don't see any scars," Faith replied. Gabrielle lifted her shirt.

"A small one, 'ere," she said, pointing to a thin line just above her navel. " 'Ermione could remove it, of course, but I prefer to keep it as a reminder zat zere is always zee chance of defeat, and death."

"Mine is on my thigh. The little dude is something, isn't he?"

" 'Eendid 'e is. 'E also told me zat you defeated 'im…"

"I got lucky," Faith said dismissively.

" 'Zat ees not 'ow Master Yoshi tells it. Now zat I know who you are, I pledge to you zee full power of my organization. We shall do whatever needs to be done to 'elp your Dawn. You need not fear obstruction, d'accord?" Gabrielle extended her hand, and Faith clasped it gratefully.

"Thanks, what exactly do you do?"

"What needs to be done, as I said. _Whatever_ needs to be done…"

Faith _really_ liked Gabrielle.

"I hope Buffy can find something that will help," Hermione fretted, "it would be tragic to lose Dawn."

"If there is anything to get, Buffy and Willow will get it," Ricky said confidently. "Rachel, do you think there was enough food and stuff for our guests?"

"Looked like it. Frankly, since Amanda wasn't there I think a lot of people went over to the Audi place to pick on them. Michel was handing out Ferrari shirts to everyone," Rachel answered him.

"I'm sorry to miss that," Ricky admitted.

"I've heard of Ferraris, of course," Hermione said, "I've even seen a few here in France. What is the shirt thing about?"

"Daddy and Amanda just won the 24 hours here," explained Rachel. Hermione's eyebrows raised, Ricky shrugged.

"Mandy will take you for a ride in the car after we get Dawn fixed up, if you like," he offered.

"That might be a little much for me, I think, but I bet Gabi would love it," she replied.

_"Willow, Willow, I…"_ whispered Dawn, and Faith and Gabrielle bent close to her.

Dawn was seeing her first truly intimate encounter with Willow. It had been a positive storm of lightning and blue fire that had set off a similar conflagration between Faith and Buffy in their home. Several slayers had noticed the flashing lights from the house at the back of the property, and ascribed it to magic. That is of course precisely what it was, but they had the exact kind of magic wrong.

Gabrielle's eyes met Faith's, and Faith smiled and shrugged.

"Good dreams," Faith confirmed, "if she has one about her and Buffy we might have our hands full… oh shit, TMI." Faith actually blushed.

"Not to worry, I also 'ave a sister whom I love," Gabrielle confided.

"Small, small, world," Faith replied wonderingly.

"Let's get back to the hospital," Buffy told the others, "we need to get Dawn to a more secure location, and we need to start tracking this bitch of a witch and this lizard of a wizard."

"That's the old Buffy talkin'!" Willow said enthusiastically. "We'll find them, Buffy." Buffy looked over at Amanda, Kennedy, and Ryuki.

"My compliments on the cervical separation, Buffy, Master Yoshi would have been pleased," Ryuki told her.

"Thanks, but tell me straight, all of you," she demanded. "Do any of you have a problem with how I dealt with Rayne, or with extending the same courtesy to anyone else involved in this? Because I do not intend to spend the rest of my life looking over my shoulder for this sort of attack. I mean to stamp this out once and for all."

To a woman, the slayers loved Dawn fiercely now. Dawn had saved all of them from death or serious injury many times since coming into her powers. Even more important to them were the changes in Faith and Buffy. The leaders were much happier now, and consequently so was everyone else.

"These people are worse than vampires," Ryuki said. "Vampires have the demon driving them, these people chose their path. I have no problem."

"Me neither," Kennedy added.

"Can the three of us draw straws for the next one?" Amanda asked.

"Fine by me," Buffy said, "you might have to hurry to get in front of Faith, though."

"Also," Willow added as the black veins crawled across her face, "the witch is _mine._"

No one contested that.


	9. Chapter 9

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 8<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG13<p>

Warnings: Hints at incest  
>Word Count: 1000<p>

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 9

"Parallelism"

"So how did you and Hermione meet? I met Dawn because she was Buffy's sister. Back when we were the only two slayers in existence, not that there were supposed to be two," Faith asked.

"Our story is similar. 'Ermione met my sister Fleur in school. During zee wizard war zey became friends and after zee war, when I was older, and 'Ermione came to visit us, I seduced her," Gabrielle explained candidly.

"Damn small world…" mused Faith. "Not that it's my business, but are you and your sister really…" Gabrielle shrugged.

"Some loves are too strong to put in a box, non?"

"I do understand that, yes," Faith admitted as she recalled how love had unfolded among the four of them. It had simply been too much to deny, and they were all stronger for it. Dawn, however, was the keystone of their relationship. "It won't work without Dawn, not with just three of us," Faith said quietly.

"Zen we must save 'er," Gabrielle declared.

"If we do, will you come with me to Yoshi's to train? You're gonna need a new name if we pull this off."

"_When_ we save 'er, I would be most honored to," Gabrielle promised, and the two women clasped hands over Dawn's recumbent form.

_"Buffy-" _Dawn whispered.

"Time to go," Buffy announced, entering the room with Willow and the slayers. "We got all there was to get."

"And what was that?" Faith asked.

"Some sort of street name for the wizard that supplied the spell used on the dart," Willow replied. "The witch involved was heavily disguised, no name, not much help there."

"What is the name?" Hermione asked

"Gourmande de la mort," Willow supplied.

"Merde," muttered Gabrielle.

"Gabi ? " Hermione queried.

" Zis name is known to us, but it is as you say, a false name. Zis wizard works through a series of intermediaries and their true identity is as yet unknown. Doubtless zis Rayne person never met zee true 'gourmande de la mort', " Gabi answered her. "Also, all zis wizard does is supply knowledge, information. What 'e does is not technically illegal, so little can be done, officially."

"Unofficially?" Faith prompted.

" It is time for zis wizard to retire, I zink," Gabrielle said with a brittle smile.

"You're a lucky woman, Doctor Granger," Faith said sincerely.

"Believe me, I know," Hermione agreed. "By the name this wizard is a former Death Eater, and that might help us to find them."

"Per'aps," Gabrielle admitted, "do you 'ave a description, Willow?"

"I can show you the image I took from his mind," Willow replied.

"Oh, are you a legilimens?" Hermione asked.

"Huh?"

"There is a magical discipline that some witches or wizards use called 'legilimency'," Hermione explained. "With sufficient skill, one can in essence look into the mind of another."

"Neat," Willow said, her curiosity about all things magic asserting itself, "so you just take the thoughts?"

"No, one views them, it's rather like watching a film," Hermione explained, "is that what you did?"

"Not really, no. What I did was more like skinning someone who has a lot of tattoos and then pinning their hide up on a wall so you can see them all at once," Willow explained.

"Oh," Hermione whispered, and she went a little pale.

"I like 'er," Gabrielle told Faith.

"Can we save the magic lessons until we get Dawn someplace safer?" Buffy asked.

"Of course," Hermione said briskly. "Gabi and I can Apparate three at the time safely. How shall we work this?"

"You take Dawn, Willow, and me," Faith decided. "Gabrielle can bring Ricky, Buffy, and Ryuki. That will give us max power on the ground to start with."

"Good call," Buffy agreed, "and we might need cars. Amanda, I guess that means you and Rachel drive."

"Deal, I seem to have an in with the cops, where are we going?" Amanda queried, and Hermione scribbled an address on a pad.

"It's about 150 kilometres, I'm afraid," Hermione apologized.

"What do we have besides the Cayenne?" Amanda asked Rachel.

"A Dinan X5M," Rachel answered her, "and 2 little BMW's."

"Do you have a preference?" Amanda asked her.

"I'm most comfortable in the Cayenne," Rachel admitted.

"Okay, I'll take the X5M, try and keep up. Forty minute tops," Amanda promised, and Hermione's eyes went round.

"Believe her," Blake suggested.

"We'll give you a little head start," Buffy told her.

"Here," Hermione said as she handed a small cube to each of them," these will allow you to pass the wards on the gate. I need just a moment to key them to you."

Hermione waved her wand and muttered a spell; Amanda, Kennedy, Rachel, and Renata felt a tingling sensation.

"I have to warn you though, that if someone captures you and forces you to lead them through the wards, you may be seriously injured. Even killed," Hermione informed them.

"Anyone trying to capture us will be dead long before then," Amanda promised, and she and Rachel left along with Renata and Kennedy.

"I like 'er too," Gabrielle said to Faith.

"Gabi, my beautiful new friend, you are standing in the midst of the cans that ass-whippings come in," Faith declared.

"Promise?" Gabrielle asked with a sly smile.

"Warriors…" Hermione snorted, shaking her head, but she was smiling. The smile vanished. "Let's go."

"Oh, is your house big enough for all of us and the other six slayers? I mean, we don't need our own rooms or anything, but…" Buffy asked.

"We're witches, Buffy," Hermione assured her, "the house is as big as it needs to be."

"Oh."

"Let's go," Faith said, lifting Dawn into her arms, "Willow, would you grab my scythe and Dawnie's?"

"Sure," Willow picked up the two cases.

"Willow, get a good grip on Faith," Hermione instructed as she laid her hand on the slayer's shoulder. "Hold tight to Dawn, please, Faith."

"I always do."

"See you in a minute, Gabrielle my love," Hermione said, and the four women disappeared with a crack.

"Is this gonna make me puke?" Buffy asked as she took Ryuki by one hand and reached for Ricky with the other."

"Per'aps", Gabrielle admitted, and then they were gone too.


	10. Chapter 10

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 10<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG13<p>

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1450

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 10

" Tuez-les tous "

"That was different," Willow admitted when she, Faith, Dawn, and Hermione appeared in front of a stone house set in a forest clearing.

"More like a roller coaster than teleportation is," Faith agreed.

"I look forward to experiencing true teleportation," Hermione said, "let's get our Avatar comfortably situated. Follow me, ladies."

The door swung open as Hermione approached, and they had just stepped inside when they heard the others arrive.

"Ohgod, I'm gonna-" they heard Buffy gasp, followed by some distinctly unpleasant sounds. "Sorry, Gabrielle."

" 'Zink nothing of it, it 'appens often, zee first time. _Evanesco_," Gabrielle replied.

"That's a useful spell," Blake commented, "wish I could do that."

"Come, let us join zee others." Gabrielle led them into the house.

"This room, Faith," Hermione directed, and Faith carried Dawn into a very pleasant room. It was light and airy, and only the presence of some hospital equipment kept it from being anything other than an ordinary, if very lovely, bedroom. Even the beds looked normal, but one of them did have the usual controls for elevation and such. "This will be Dawn's bed," Hermione indicated, and Faith gently lay Dawn upon it. "Let me just do a quick check on her," Hermione requested, and Faith stood aside so that she could.

"How is she?" Buffy asked.

"Fine," replied Hermione, "that is to say, still just sleeping. I do not believe that the spell is having the effect that the caster intended, however."

"How do you mean," Willow asked.

"The intent was to separate her from the stream, and at first that was the effect it was having. But whoever did this apparently did not know who and what Dawn is. The stream will not allow this separation, _magic_ will not allow it," Hermione explained.

"So we just have to wait for her to wake up?" Blake asked.

"I'm afraid not, if we don't break the spell, Dawn will eventually be incorporated into the stream. She will in effect revert to her original state of pure magical energy. Buffy, you referred to this energy as bright green, yes?"

"That's the way it was described to me, yes."

"Look at this," Hermione beckoned, and she pulled up one of Dawn's eyelids.

The eye was flickering in the movements of rem sleep, but in the depths of the familiar blue was a tiny hint of green, like a distant star.

"Can you tell how long we have?" Ryuki asked.

"Not really, this is a unique situation. If an ordinary witch or wizard had been attacked in this manner I believe it would have worked within hours, depending on the power of the individual. Dawn being Dawn, however, I cannot tell precisely but I believe several days at the least. I will come up with a means of tracking the change. Meanwhile I will use a few simple spells to connect her to the monitors, she'll be more comfortable without the wires," Hermione said as she worked.

"Thanks Doc," Faith muttered, staring at Dawn. "I'd like to clean her up some, can you guys give me a little alone time once Hermione and Ricky have her all set up?"

"Sure thing," Buffy promised her. "We'll work on figuring out what to do next."

"And who to do it to," added Ryuki. Hermione and Ricky exchanged glances, Ricky shrugged. He had been around slayers a long time now.

"Everything you'll need to care for her is in the bath, Faith, including fresh gowns. There are some that aren't quite so 'hospitalish'," Hermione informed her.

"Thanks," Faith told her.

"What about fluids?" Blake asked.

"That will have to be the old-fashioned way," admitted Hermione, "but we left a heparin lock in place so it will be simple to start fluids once Faith has her situated."

The familiar beeping sounds started up, and various displays came to life.

"Damn, I wish I could do that," Blake said, "beats the hell out of a bunch of wires."

"Indeed, and the patient can be anywhere in the house and maintain the connection. That's got it. Faith, call if you need anything, okay?"

"Thanks Hermione. Thank you too, Buffy. I- I just need to take care of her for a little while, you know?" Faith said quietly.

"You always take care of her, and she takes care of you too. That's how it's supposed to be. Take your time, we'll be close by," Buffy replied, and she kissed Dawn's forehead and Faith's lips briefly before leading them from the room.

" 'Zis way," Gabrielle spoke up, and directed them into a large sitting room. "I suggest 'zat first Willow show me 'zee image of 'zis wizard she took from 'zat merchant of evil…"

Faith went to the bath and returned with a clean gown and the things she required to clean Dawn. She wasn't all that dirty, but there were a few smudges from lying on the pavement. Mostly, Faith just needed to touch her, to feel like she was caring for her.

Where Dawn was, Faith was standing nude beneath the cherry trees, watching nervously as Dawn removed her sugar-white kimono.

_"I – I'm not sure what to do," stammered Faith._

_ "I am; I just want to feel your skin on mine. After that, we'll figure it out as we go along."_

Faith heard Dawn whisper those words, and her eyes flooded as she fought not to cry out loud. Her hands trembled as she tenderly bathed Dawn, put the clean gown on her and then held her close.

Willow placed a hand on Gabrielle's forehead and a light pulsed brightly where their skin met.

"I know 'im," Gabrielle said in satisfaction. " 'Is name is Phillipe Masois, a career criminal dealing in proscribed magical artifacts. It is believed zat he was a Voldemort sympathizer who provided support to zee Death Eaters. Unfortunately it was never proven."

"But you have no doubt of it?" Hermione asked.

"None whatsover. 'E merely 'as skilled attorneys," Gabrielle assured them all.

"Lawyers won't help him with us," Buffy said baldly. "Do you know where to find him?"

"I know 'is usual places," Gabrielle answered, "I could 'ave 'im picked up, but per'aps it would be better if there were no official record of 'zis interrogation."

"That seems likely," Ryuki agreed.

"Who will go with me?" Gabrielle asked.

"Maybe we should wait until the others get here," Ryuki suggested, "I should go in case tracking is needed, and either Buffy or Faith should go, and Willow too, and at least two more. That doesn't leave much extra, even after Amanda and Rachel get here with Renata and Kennedy."

"Good idea, Ryuki," Buffy agreed, "if we can spare the time. Can we? The plane is due in about six hours."

"Unless things change drastically, yes," Hermione answered. "I'll know more once I set up the tracking spell for the change. Willow, I might need your help with that. As a matter of fact, with your help I believe we can slow the process."

"Anything you need, you'll get," Willow promised.

"Do you think Faith has had enough time alone with Dawn?" Blake asked.

"We can check," Buffy, "she'll understand, anyway. Dawn comes first, especially with Faith."

Buffy headed to Dawn's room, accompanied by Willow, Blake, Hermione, and Gabrielle. Ryuki went outside to check the perimeter; Gabrielle had explained to her how to avoid triggering the wards.

Buffy took hold of the doorknob and froze; shock was plain on her face.

"What?" asked Willow.

"Shhhh," whispered Buffy, "listen."

They all listened, and soon Ricky and Willow's faces had an expression to match Buffy's. None of them had ever heard this before.

Faith was singing.

She had a pleasing alto voice, it might have even been beautiful, but it was hard to tell because it was choked with tears. The pain in her voice wrenched the hearts of all of them as they listened, unable to turn away even though some parts could not be heard.

_ "Whenever you're in trouble won't y- by me,"_ Faith sang through her tears, fighting the words past the enormous lump in her throat.

_" – now, stand by me –" "by me, stan- by me…"_

They heard a sob, and a shuddering breath, and then one clear and plaintive line before she drifted into silence.

_"Darling, darling, stand – by me…"_

"Nobody mentions this to Faith," Buffy said in a strangled voice. "Every. Single. One. We get every single one of them."

The doorknob crushed in her grasp, and the black veins flowed over Willow's face.

"D'accord. Tuez-les tous, Dieu reconnaîtra les siens," Gabrielle agreed.

A/N : Lines from "Stand By Me", Jerry Leiber (who will be missed), Mike Stoller, and Ben E. King.


	11. Chapter 11

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 11<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG13<p>

Warnings: More talk, no real action this time.

Word Count: 1649

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"_Fading Dawn"_

_Chapter 11_

"_First Things First"_

"Let's give her a little longer," Hermione suggested.

"Good idea," Blake agreed, and they all went back to the sitting room, arriving just in time to hear Amanda and Rachel pull up out front.

"Thirty-seven minutes," Blake announced, "not bad." Gabrielle went to greet the new arrivals.

"How is Dawn?" Amanda asked.

"Stable," Hermione replied.

"So no worse, but no better, right?"

"That about sums it up," agreed Ricky as he hugged his wife.

"Michel called, he's taking the bitch to Maranello for safe keeping," Amanda told him, "also to put on display. Don't worry," she said quickly at the look on his face, "I made sure that he knows not to let anyone with a wrench near her."

"Okay, we've got a little less than six hours until the plane lands, all of you racing types are on enforced rest as of now. Hermione, where can they sleep?" Buffy asked.

"Follow me, Faith can stay with Dawn, I don't fancy asking her to leave. How many are we talking, Buffy?"

"Apart from Faith, there are Ryuki, Kennedy, Renata, and Amanda, so four. Ricky, you're in charge of your own rest, I don't fancy telling you what to do either," Buffy admitted.

"I'll show Amanda and Ricky to their room. Gabrielle, will you take the others to the large guest room?" Hermione requested.

"Of course, follow me girls," Gabrielle replied.

"Willow, give them five hours keyed to you and me, but don't include Faith just yet, it might disrupt whatever is happening with her and Dawn. Willow and I will handle security until the others get here," announced Buffy.

"I will 'elp as well," Gabrielle told her.

"What do you mean by "five hours keyed to you and Willow, Buffy?"

"They've all been on short sleep for a couple days now, experience has taught us that even slayers need rest, but it's hard for us to sleep when there is a perceived threat. Willow will do a spell that puts them under, and whoever the spell is keyed to can awaken them at once from wherever they are. It's quite effective."

"We must talk about zis later, Willow," Gabrielle called over her shoulder, " 'zis sounds useful."

"Sure. Let's go check on Faith and Dawn, Buffy," Willow suggested.

"I'll be there as soon as I show Amanda and Ricky their room," Hermione promised.

Buffy and Willow paused at the door and listened, hearing nothing, they slipped into the room. Hermione had already repaired the doorknob.

Faith was lying beside Dawn, holding her and fast asleep.

"They're so beautiful together," Buffy whispered, not for the first time. Willow hugged her.

"We'll fix this. This house is much better than the hospital, and between Ricky and Doctor Granger Dawn couldn't possibly be in better hands. I think Gabrielle and Faith will work well together too, I'd hate to be in that guy's shoes when they find him."

"And find 'im we shall," promised Gabrielle. "Your Faith is known to all in my division, and our sister organizations across the continent. We are all honored to assist Sumizome Shishi – Sama. 'Zere are teams searching for our subject even now, all unofficially, of course." Hermione entered the room.

"I can set up the spell without disturbing them," Hermione informed them. "Look at the monitors, Faith being with her has slowed her pulse and respiration, calmed her. At some level Dawn knows she is with her."

_"I knew you'd find me," Dawn said to Faith._

_ "I always know where you are," Faith replied. "We're on this, all of us, and we've got some first-class help. It's just a matter of finding a couple people."_

_ "The little blonde is gorgeous; I could see her when she handled your scythe. She's a witch, right?"_

_ "Yeah, not like you or Willow, but a witch. So is Hermione, and she's also a doctor kind of like Ricky. Gabrielle has even studied with Yoshi."_

_ "Small world, huh?" Dawn commented with the smile that Faith loved so much._

_ "Really small, yeah. She's going with us when we pick up the rest of these assholes."_

_ "Good, she's powerful, I could feel that." Dawn stared at Faith as they stood on the bank of the river. "You know I wouldn't mind, right?"_

_ "I know. But all I want right now is to feel your skin on mine; anything else will either happen or not."_

_ "Okay, now let's lie down so you can rest…"_

"Good dreams, both of them," Hermione announced as she plugged the fluid bag into the connection on Dawn's arm. She took out her wand and passed it over both Dawn and Faith. "Amazing. Their magical energies are actually entwined. They literally draw strength from each other."

"Is that a good idea?" Willow asked. "Doesn't it weaken them somehow?"

"No, that's the amazing part. Also, Dawn is getting stronger, more powerful."

"That's good, right?" Buffy questioned.

"To a point, yes. The magic that formed Dawn from you and the key has a limit. If we don't break the spell in time, Dawn will simply become too powerful to be confined in human form. I think I've got a spell that will enable me to measure that progress. Willow, I'll need to borrow some power from you to do this. Your power is closer to Dawn's than mine is," Hermione told them.

"Sure, what should I do?"

"Just take my hand and do what you did at the hospital. I'll be able to draw on your power to reinforce the spell and adapt it to this kind of magical energy."

Willow went black-eyed and veiny, and Hermione wove an intricate pattern with her wand as she spoke a steady stream of Latin. There was a shimmer in the air, and above the bank of medical equipment there appeared a crystal globe. In the depths of the globe there was a swirling green mass.

"If the entire globe turns green, we're too late," Hermione informed them. "We can estimate remaining time, but there is no way to be precisely sure. The next few hours will give us a better idea."

"I've never experienced magic like that," Willow said slowly, "so precise, so disciplined. My problem is usually trying not to use too much power."

"It was different for me as well," Hermione allowed, "I've never had that much power to call on. Oh, look!"

Their hands were still joined, and faint dark veins were visible on Hermione's hand and wrist. Willow hastily released her hand.

"Are you okay, did I hurt you?" Willow asked anxiously.

"Not at all, I'm fine," assured Hermione, "in fact I feel splendid, stronger than I ever have. I wonder how long it will last?" Even as she spoke the veins faded away.

"Is it gone?" Buffy asked.

"Not completely, no," Hermione replied, and she giggled. "I'm sorry; it just feels funny, rather like a kitten running wild in the middle of my magic, if that makes sense."

"No worries Doc, she does something like that to me too," Buffy assured her.

"The slayers are settled in," Gabrielle announced, "Dr. Blake asked me to tell you that he will be here soon. Shall we check the wards and the grounds now?"

"Good idea," Buffy agreed, and she headed for the door, but stopped short and turned back to Hermione and Gabrielle. "I can never thank you enough for what you're doing. However this turns out, you two have some _very_ good friends from now on."

"As do you," Gabrielle replied. "Faith 'as already asked me to train with 'er at Master Yoshi's. My colleagues will be insane wiz jealousy over zis."

"I rather think that all of us will benefit from this relationship," Hermione added, "time enough to explore that when we have Dawn back, though."

"Right," agreed Willow, "saving Dawn comes first."

"First I shall show you the range of the wards," Gabrielle told Buffy.

"That's a magical protection thingy, right?"

"Precisely, since you came in wiz me, zee wards know you as a friend, and will not 'arm you. Stop 'ere, can you feel anyzing?"

Buffy concentrated – "Yeah, a sort of tingle, kind of like goosebumps," she answered.

"Good, the wards will notify both 'Ermione and myself of any attempt to breech 'zem. Un moment, I shall key 'zem to you so 'zat you will be notified as well." Gabriel passed her wand over Buffy and the tingling intensified.

"How will the wards notify me?" asked Buffy.

"I will show you," Gabrielle said, and she threw a large rock at the invisible curtain.

"Oh!" exclaimed Buffy, putting her hand to her cheek. "That stung a little."

"It also gives you a rough idea of zee direction of zee alarm, if it is your nose that stings, zee danger is straight in front of you. I shall also key 'zem to Faith when she wakes."

"You two seem to get along well together," Buffy observed.

"We have 'zings in common, as do you and I," Gabrielle said with a shrug, "and of course I am honored to meet 'er. Sumizome Shishi – Sama is well known in some circles."

"She's something all right, but I thought I felt something a little more personal between you two. Hermione and Willow, too – no," Buffy said quickly upon seeing the look of concern of Gabrielle's face, "it's not a problem for any of us. We won't push, but life has taught us all that certain connections are too precious to ignore. I'm just glad you didn't freak about the me and Dawn business. Oh. Faith did mention that, right?"

"In passing, yes," Gabrielle said with a smile, "and as I told 'er, I also 'ave a sister I love very much." She shrugged again. "As you say, some 'zings are too precious to ignore. Now let us finish our patrol."

"Small, small world," Buffy said quietly, following Gabrielle through the trees.


	12. Chapter 12

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 12<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG13<p>

Warnings: Badness, no sex, no gore

Word Count: 2400

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 12

"Unforgivable"

"Candace called," Buffy announced, "the pilot says they're about 30 minutes out."

"Bien, I shall meet 'zem," Gabrielle told her.

"Time to wake up, people," Buffy said casually. In a few moments all of the slayers except Faith were in the sitting room.

"How far away is the airfield, Gabrielle?" Buffy asked.

"Only about 30 kilometers, 'zat is one reason our 'ome is 'ere. It often serves as a safe 'ouse," Gabrielle told her.

"Cool, any problem with Mandy and Kennedy taking the cars there? I hate to have you magic everybody over, and they have equipment and supplies and stuff."

"Not at all, I shall Apparate and clear 'zee way," Gabrielle volunteered.

"Best take me along," Faith said as she joined the group, "some of those girls might react even worse than Amanda did if a stranger appeared out of thin air. No point in the good guys beating each other up, is there?"

"I could go," Buffy offered.

"You haven't had any sleep," Faith countered. "Dawnie is okay where she is, for now anyway. She knows what's going on. Willow is with her now, and once she gets to sleep she can talk with Dawn. Besides, you puking all over the place won't help much."

"Right, and thanks for bringing that up. Okay Gabi, can you give directions to Amanda?" Buffy asked.

"Better 'zan 'zat," Gabrielle said, and she flicked her wand. " 'Zis globe will guide you, Amanda, just follow it. 'Zere are few turns, in any case."

"Okay, I'll check in with Ricky and then I'll be ready to go. Will I need a password or something?"

"Non, I shall arrange things. My people will remain out of sight, except for my second, she will want to meet Faith," Gabrielle explained. "We should go soon, Faith."

"I'm ready when you are," Faith promised.

Buffy's cell rang.

"Yes, Candace? Oh, okay, no problem," Buffy hung up. "Ryuki, ride with Amanda."

"Sure, boss. Anything I need to know?

"You'll see, nothing bad though, just a surprise," Buffy told her. "We'll plan the next step when everyone is here. We need to find this Masois character first. Maybe he can tell us something about the witch and this gourd-man-deli-morgue, or Pepe la Pew, or whoever the fuck he is."

"D'accord, my people are on 'zat," Gabrielle promised. "Are you ready to go, Faith?"

"In a minute, I want to kiss Dawn goodbye. It's kind of a ritual with us when either of us leaves," Faith replied.

"I understand, one never knows, does one?" Gabrielle told her. "Oh, please bring your weapon, if you do not mind. Nicollete will wish to see it."

"Sure thing, be right back."

"Everything okay?" Willow asked sleepily when Faith entered the room. Ricky was snoring softly on the other bed while Hermione monitored the instruments.

"Fine, I'm going with Gabrielle to meet the plane. Dawn will be glad to see you, maybe you two can figure out something that will help."

"We'll try. Doctor Granger is right, Dawn is getting stronger, I can feel it."

"Strong is good; we just have to stop it before it goes too far." Faith leaned over and kissed Dawn on the lips. "I'll see you soon, baby," she whispered, and Dawn smiled in her sleep.

"Me too, please," Willow asked, and Faith obliged.

The kiss that Willow and Faith shared was something other than gentle, each of them seemed aware that things might not go well, and there was an edge of desperation to it.

"Please be careful," Willow asked, "look out for us."

"Always," promised Faith, and she picked up her scythe and left the room.

"I'm scared every time Gabi goes out," Hermione confessed, as she walked to the bedside.

"They'll take care of each other," Willow said, "but I know what you mean."

"Forgive me if I'm out of line here, but do you ever have problems with jealousy in your relationships? I'm pretty sensitive to such things, but while I can feel that the bonds among you are different, I just don't see any hint of conflict," Hermione asked tentatively.

"No, that's the remarkable thing," Willow agreed, "my feelings for Buffy are different than my feelings for Dawn or Faith. I've loved Buffy from the second I saw her, even though it took us both a while to realize it. Actually, without Dawn I don't think we'd ever have gotten together. Dawn loves Faith so much that it opened up a whole new world for all of us. It's usually Dawn and Faith, and me and Buffy, but we've all learned that love is something to be treasured, not feared."

"So Dawn is the cornerstone of your relationships?" Willow nodded. "That's what Faith said as well." Hermione chewed her lip for a moment. "For us it's Gabrielle's sister, Fleur. She was my friend, and an amazing witch, but when Gabrielle sort of overwhelmed me we both found that we needed Fleur as well. I was quite shocked, to tell you the truth, but there has never been a sight so beautiful as Fleur and Gabrielle together."

"I hope we can meet her," Willow replied. "Do you ever, I mean…" Willow blushed fiercely.

"Sometimes," Hermione replied with a smile, "as you said, love is to be treasured, not feared."

"Thank you for helping us."

"You're welcome. Please say hello to Dawn for me, do you need something to help you sleep?"

"No, just knowing that you and Ricky are here will be enough. Be sure and get some rest yourself, okay?" Willow asked.

"I will. Sleep now," Hermione briefly kissed Willow on the forehead, and resumed studying the instruments monitoring Dawn. There simply had to be something more that she could do for these women that she felt such a strong connection to.

"We'll see you at the airfield," Faith told Amanda and the others, and she went outside with Gabrielle.

"I should warn you, Faith, 'zat Nicollete is quite a fan of yours," Gabrielle said to Faith.

"Did she study with Yoshi too?"

"Oui. She is a master of unarmed combat, as well as a powerful witch. She did not manage to defeat Master Yoshi, however, 'zat is why she is so taken wi'z you." Faith shrugged.

"Just as long as she doesn't try to kick my ass, I expect we'll get along. Is she little like you are?'

"Not precisely," Gabrielle answered, " 'ang on, mon amie."

The women disappeared.

"This isn't a race, Amanda," Buffy reminded her.

"Right, boss. I'll behave," Amanda conceded, and she, Ryuki, and Kennedy departed.

"Come on, I'll show you the grounds," Buffy said to the other slayers.

"This is fun; can you teach my witches how to do this?" Faith asked when she and Gabi arrived at the airfield. Gabrielle shrugged.

"Per'aps, 'Ermione will know. Come, we shall go to zee control center."

Gabrielle led the way to an unprepossessing building, and held the door open for Faith.

"Any problems?" Gabrielle asked the people in the room.

"None, the pilot is quite competent, all codes as required, and steady on the flight path," reported a man sitting at a console.

"Bien, may I present Faith LeHane, better known to some of you as Sumizome Shishi – Sama," Gabrielle said with a hint of a smile.

A chair overturned, and Faith found herself forced to look up sharply to meet the gaze of the woman in front of her.

"Faith, my second in command, Nicollete, Nic, I present to you the Dark Lion herself," Gabrielle said proudly.

Nicollete bowed deeply and correctly.

"I am honored to meet you, Sumizome Shishi – Sama. Master Yoshi speaks most highly of you."

"Thanks, nice to meet you too. Here, Gabi said you wanted to see this," Faith said, and she handed her scythe to the tall woman.

"This is magnificent! It feels alive, almost," gasped Nicollete, and she returned the weapon to Faith. Faith arched an eyebrow.

"If you can feel that, you're pretty special. I'll get in touch with you about some advanced training after we get this mess cleaned up, if it's okay with your boss, that is," Faith amended.

"Such training would be welcomed," Gabrielle replied. "I 'ave every confidence in Nicollete."

"The plane is ten minutes out, and there are vehicles approaching the gate," announced the wizard at the console. Gabrielle looked over his shoulder at the screen.

" 'Zey are friendlies, open zee gate. Let us meet your friends, Faith," Gabrielle said, and they left the control room.

"I think you could take her, Nic," said the controller.

"Then you are a bigger fool than you look, Jules. That woman is beyond all of us," Nicollete replied.

The cars drew up smoothly near Gabrielle and Faith, and Amanda, Kennedy, and Ryuki got out and joined them.

"Just a few minutes," Faith told them.

"We didn't see anyone on the way in," Amanda reported.

"Good," Gabrielle replied.

"Ryuki, why don't you take a minute and go introduce yourself to the tall woman in the building over there," Faith suggested, "she studied with Yoshi."

"Sure," agreed Ryuki, and she trotted off.

"What is 'zat about?" Gabrielle asked.

"Just wondering if Nic has heard of Ryuki," Faith replied.

"Hello," Ryuki said, "Faith asked me to introduce myself, I am Chimeiteki Kusabana. I understand that you have studied with Master Yoshi?"

"Uhhh, yes," Nicollete whispered hoarsely, staring at Ryuki.

"Plane is crossing outer markers," reported Jules.

"Perhaps I should go then," Ryuki said with a smile, "it was nice meeting you…"

"Oh! Sorry. Nicollete. Call me Nic, everyone does…"

"Thanks, call me Ryuki, see you later!" Ryuki ghosted from the building.

"You okay, Nic?" asked Jules.

"Not sure, but they named that one right."

"Smitten, are you?" Jules teased.

"Fuck you, Jules," Nicollete replied.

"I don't dare, but best of luck, Nic."

"What did you think of Nic?" Faith asked Ryuki.

"Tall, quiet. Hot, though. Is she seeing anyone?" This last was directed to Gabrielle.

"I suspect so, in 'er dreams now, in any case," Gabrielle replied. Ryuki looked back at the building.

"First things first," Ryuki said, "but I have leave coming up."

"Here it is," Amanda announced, and they all watched the plane settle onto the tarmac and roll to a stop near them.

"Dawn is a lot better than an airplane," Faith muttered.

The engines were still winding down when the door opened, and a set of steps unfolded. An imposing figure filled the door.

"Miko!" exclaimed Ryuki, and the dog's ears twitched, but she made no move.

"Is 'zat a wolf?" asked Gabrielle.

"No," Ryuki answered, "Miko is an Akita. She is mine. Giles must have sent her."

"She is 'uge," Gabrielle stated.

"You should see Fluffy," Faith told her. "Call her, 'Yuki, before she busts." The dog was trembling with joy at seeing her mistress, but she knew her duty.

"Miko, come!" cried Ryuki, and the dog launched herself into space and hit the tarmac running. An instant later she was happily washing Ryuki's face.

"Miko will help with security," Faith told Gabrielle. "Nothing gets past her; she can smell sunlight and hear starshine."

"Bon, we 'ave some canines as well. 'Zis one is very well trained."

"She is. Here come the girls," Faith announced as Candace appeared in the doorway.

Gabrielle turned away suddenly, putting her hand to her ear.

"Faith, one of my teams 'as located our target, 'e is alone and in a remote place," Gabrielle said urgently.

"They can't grab him, can they?" Faith inquired.

"Alas, non, we 'ave no official reason to restrain 'im."

"Can you take some of us there?"

"Only you, zee space is too confined for more. 'Zat is a risk, but zee situation is o'zerwise ideal," Gabrielle told Faith.

"And who knows when we'll get another chance… Amanda, you're in charge. Get the girls and the gear to the house, and tell Buffy what's going on. Gabi, let's go," Faith commanded, and she took Gabrielle's arm. "Later," Faith said, and they disappeared.

"What just happened?" Candace asked after giving Kennedy a brief hug.

"Faith went off with one of our new friends to nail one of the people involved in the attack," Amanda explained.

"We have two new witches on our side," Ryuki added, "one of them is also a physician, the one who just left with Faith is some kind of spook. She got us into this airfield."

"So what now?" Marty asked.

"Grab the gear and get to the house," Amanda answered.

"That's a big girl," Candace commented. They followed her gaze and saw Nicollete approaching, she walked up to Ryuki. Miko moved between them.

"She is a friend, Miko," Ryuki told the dog, and Miko relaxed. A little.

"Gabrielle instructed me to see if you need any help," Nicollete asked.

"I think we've got it covered, Nic, but thanks," Ryuki answered.

"The pilot will take the plane to Orly as soon as we've unloaded," Candace informed her. "I'll just go grab my gear, thanks for your help."

"You are certain there is nothing I can do for you?" Nicollete asked Ryuki hopefully.

"I am quite sure that there is. However, now is not the time," Ryuki replied with a smile.

Nicollete returned the smile. "It has been an honor to meet you, Fatal Flower; please get in touch should you need anything. Gabrielle always knows how to find me. Enjoy your stay in France."

"May I call you once our business here is done?"

"Please do."

"Okay ladies, flirting time is over," Amanda told them. Ryuki extended her hand, but Nicollete ignored it, instead kissing her on either cheek.

"You are in France, we do things differently here," Nic explained, and then she winked at Ryuki went back to the control center.

"You like 'em big, huh Ryuki?"

"I like that one, at least enough to want to get to know her better. This really is an interesting bunch we've run into, isn't it?"

Faith and Gabrielle appeared in a narrow alleyway; a cloaked figure was a short distance ahead of them and turned quickly at the sound of Apparition.

"Bon jour, Masois. We must 'ave a talk, you and I, n'est ce pas?" Gabrielle said brightly.

With startling speed a wand appeared in his hand, and Faith thrust Gabrielle behind her as she rushed forward.

"Avada Kedavra!" cried Masois, and the jet of green light struck Faith square in the chest.


	13. Chapter 13

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 13<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Character Death, Extreme Violence, Language

Word Count: 1340

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 13

"Understanding"

Faith jerked the wand from his hand and threw it over her shoulder without paying any attention to the stunned look on his face. She then quickly twisted him around and began the process of choking him unconscious while she turned to see if Gabrielle needed help.

"You okay?" she asked as the man slumped to the ground. Faith secured his hands behind his back.

"Why aren't you dead?" Gabrielle asked numbly.

"Clean living? What the hell are you talking about?"

" 'Zat curse he hit you with, it is known as zee "killing curse", it will kill _dragons_, Faith, and 'zere is no counter, no block. I heard it, I saw it hit you…"

"Beats me then, maybe Green Lantern here did it wrong. Does it matter? We got him, are you okay?" Faith repeated.

"What? Oh, yes, I am fine. Just shocked."

"Not disappointed, I hope," Faith asked with a grin. The grin vanished when Gabrielle ran to Faith, took her in her arms, and kissed her.

"You saved my life, Faith," she said when she broke the kiss.

"Any time, Gabi. What do we do with this asshole now?"

"We shall find out what he knows. "Zis is as good a place as any. My people will see 'zat we are not disturbed."

Gabrielle and Faith propped Masois up against a wall, and Gabi slapped him a few times.

"Wake up Philippe, we must talk, n'est ce pas?"

"I wish to speak with my attorney."

"Tough shit, sunshine, no lawyers allowed. Wouldn't help you with me anyway, I'd just kill them too," Faith said bluntly. Masois' eyes went round when he saw her.

"You should be dead," he said.

"I keep hearing that. But here I am, alive and kicking. Also very pissed off, you motherfucker, so just answer the questions. You can't kill me, but I promise you that I can kill you and I'm really itching to do it."

"You cannot do tha- Ahhh!"

Faith had taken his left forearm in her hands and snapped it like a pencil.

"What I "cannot do", would fit in a teeny-tiny box. Do what she says or I swear I'll turn your skeleton into splinters," Faith said calmly. "You had something to do with an attack on someone I love. More importantly, you had something to do with an attack on someone who loves me, and as hard as it may be to believe, not all that many people love me. So I am fully prepared to tear your lungs out if I have to."

"I would believe 'er, if I were you," Gabrielle counseled. "Also, you 'ave used an unforgivable curse on a human, in the presence of a Section Chief of zee Special Branch. An examination of your wand will confirm 'zis. You would receive a life sentence at the least for 'zis, even if she does not kill you. I point out 'zat if she decided to do so, I could not stop her even if cared to, which I do not. Do we understand each uzzer?"

"Yes! Anything! Just don't let her kill me, whatever she is!"

"You will answer all of my questions truthfully and completely?"

"Yes!"

"What's to keep him from lying just to save his miserable hide?" Faith asked.

"Will you consent to be questioned under the influence of veritaserum?" Gabrielle asked. Masois hesitated, and Faith reached for his other arm.

"YES!" he screamed.

"So noted and recorded," Gabrielle said formally, and she produced a bottle from her pack. "If we are satisfied, I shall return your wand to you. Otherwise you face life in prison or a painful death in 'zis alley. Comprenez vous?"

"Yes, I understand. I'm just trying to make a living," Masois whined.

"You're the second person I've met lately who makes a living out of other people dying," Faith said conversationally. "As for him, I tore his heart out of his chest. Want me to show you? It's really cool."

"Give me the potion, please!"

"Drink 'zis, you bastard, and it is more 'zan you deserve…"

He swallowed the potion.

"You are Philippe Masois?"

"Yes."

"You sometimes go by zee name of Gourmand de la Mort?"

"Yes."

"Are you in fact 'zis Gourmand de la Mort?"

"No, I am merely a representative."

"Who approached you concerning binding a spell to an object, specifically, a dart?"

"A witch, not our kind, a Wiccan. Her power was very great, like a pagan God."

"What is her name?"

"I do not know." Faith gently grasped his broken arm, and began to squeeze.

"You sure about that, my friend?" Faith asked softly.

"Yes!"

"He cannot lie, Faith. The potion ensures this," Gabrielle explained.

"Yeah, well that spell was supposed to kill me. Maybe things aren't all that certain around here just now," Faith countered. Gabrielle had to admit that she had a point.

"Was she under a glamour?"

"No, I would never consent to a meeting with someone who was under a glamour. This is only sensible, you must agree." Gabrielle did agree, and in fact had been counting on it.

"What did she look like?" Gabrielle proceeded.

"Blonde, attractive, but she seemed a bit mad. There was something in her eyes that was different."

"This is not helpful, Philippe," Gabrielle informed him.

"Take the memory, if you wish," he suggested, and Gabrielle put her wand to his temple. "There, I am thinking of my meeting with her." Gabrielle withdrew the memory and secured it in a small vial.

"That was gross," Faith said. Gabrielle shrugged.

"Who is the true Gourmand de la Mort?" she asked.

"I do not know."

"Bullshit," Faith commented, and she squeezed again.

"I do not know, I do not know!" screamed Masois. Faith relaxed her grip.

"Give me the details of the spell she wanted bound to the object, and the spell used to bind it."

"I do not know them. Gourmand de la Mort does not trust this spell to any subordinate. I merely gave the witch directions to another meeting."

"You will give me these directions." Masois did so.

"Legilimens," Gabrielle intoned.

Faith watched as Gabrielle stared into Masois' eyes for long minutes. At last she lowered her wand, and Masois slumped against the wall.

"What was that?" Faith asked.

"I used Legilimency to verify his story. He knows nothing else of value to us," Gabrielle replied.

"We didn't get much."

"On the contrary, we know what this witch looks like, and that she met with the true Gourmand de la Mort, and where and when the meeting took place. This is progress."

"I guess you're right, I'm just worried about Dawn," Faith admitted.

"I know, my friend, I know," Gabrielle said softly, and she embraced Faith briefly. Masois stirred, and sat up straight.

"I have done as you demanded," he said, "will you now keep your word and return my wand?"

"Certainement," Gabrielle answered, and she thrust the wand through his eye and into his brain.

"I didn't expect that," Faith admitted as she watched the man die jerking spasmodically in the alley.

"As I said before, we do what needs to done," Gabrielle explained, pulling the wand free and wiping it on his robes. "Let us go home now, this piece of filth we shall leave as an example. He at least will do no further harm. His fate was sealed the moment he uttered that curse."

"I'm kind of hot for you right now, Gabrielle. I hope that doesn't make you think badly of me, it's just…"

"It is who we are, Faith. We do these things because we can, and they are sometimes necessary. It is not the death 'zat arouses us; it is the commitment, the sacrifice. We stand in judgment, and if we pay a price for that one day, then we pay it," Gabrielle shrugged. "Few understand these things, we do."

Faith kissed her lightly.

"Yeah, we do," Faith said, and Gabrielle Apparated them away.


	14. Chapter 14

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 14<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG 13<p>

Warnings: None

Word Count: 2140

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 14

"Unbreakable"

"Any luck?" Hermione asked when Faith and Gabrielle entered the sitting room.

"How's Dawn?" Faith asked by way of answer.

"Comfortable. Willow is sleeping with her; Buffy is kind of snoozing in a chair beside them. There has been little measurable change. It appears that someone she knows intimately joining her in sleep slows the process somewhat," Hermione explained. "What happened, Gabi? Amanda said you and Faith rushed off to catch someone involved."

"We caught 'im. He is dead, but we learned all 'zat he knew first," Gabrielle told her.

"I need to go and see Dawn," Faith stated, and Gabrielle, Hermione, and Blake followed her into the room.

"What happened?" Hermione repeated. In reply Gabrielle handed her Masois' wand.

"Recall the last spell from his wand, please," Gabrielle said grimly. Hermione took the wand and placed her own against it.

_"Priori Incantatum,"_ Hermione spoke. A ghostly jet of green light shot from the wand. Hermione turned pale.

"He didn't!"

"Indeed he did, just as you see. In your opinion, was the spell performed properly?" Gabrielle asked.

"It surely was," confirmed Hermione. "As you know, I have done a great deal of research into this spell. I assume that casting this spell led to his being killed?"

"Indeed it did. It was 'ard to leave 'im alive long enough to question 'im," Gabrielle admitted.

"I'm very sorry, Gabi. Who died?"

"Apart from Masois, no one," Gabrielle answered.

"Then he missed?"

"Non, not at all. We surprised 'im in the alley and he cast the curse before I could move. Faith was quicker, and she pushed me behind 'er. The curse struck her full in the chest. I saw this," Gabrielle said solemnly.

"Then why – oh!" Hermione exclaimed, and her gaze lost focus.

"Something I should know?" asked Blake.

"That curse will kill any'zing," Gabrielle informed him. "Only one being in history 'as survived it, and that was because of a very ancient magic. It also resulted in massive local destruction. Absolutely nothing 'appened when it struck Faith. I am overjoyed, but I do not understand 'zis."

"I think I might," Hermione said slowly. "Ricky, it's time to open the bag for Buffy and Faith, I think."

"I'll have to trust you here Hermione, because I have no fucking idea what's going on."

"Me neither," agreed Faith.

"Buffy," Hermione said softly by her ear, and Buffy's eyes snapped open.

"What's wrong? Is Dawn worse? Is Faith okay – oh, hi," she said when she saw Faith standing with Gabrielle. She looked quizzically at Hermione and waited.

"Dr. Blake and I have something to tell you and Faith. Willow too, I think, it might be best if you wake her," Hermione told her.

"Okay," Buffy agreed, and she walked around the bed and bent over to place a soft kiss by Willow's ear. "Sweetie, sorry to bother you, but we need you to wake up."

"_Go ahead, Will," Dawn encouraged her. "Give them my love, and don't worry, I'll be right here."_

Willow embraced Dawn, kissed her, and Dawn and the stream faded from her sight as she awoke.

"What? Is Faith okay?" Willow asked.

"I'm fine babe," Faith supplied. "Apparently I shouldn't be, though."

"Why not, what happened?" Willow asked in confusion.

"Gabi, why don't you start, as you were there," Hermione suggested.

"D'accord. Faith and I Apparated to 'zee alley where Masois was, and surprised 'im, he responded by using a very powerful illegal curse 'zat is virtually one hundred percent fatal. Faith shoved me behind her and 'zee curse struck her full in the chest. It had no effect on her at all," Gabrielle said plainly.

"Didn't feel a thing," Faith confirmed.

"So slayers are immune to it?" Buffy asked.

"Nothing is immune to it, only one other being has ever survived it, and that was due to an ancient magic and a miscalculation by the wizard casting the spell. I must amend that statement, it appears that Faith is immune to it, and I'm sure that you are as well, Buffy," Hermione answered.

"I'm not gaining on this much," Faith admitted, "anyway, apart from the fact the neither Gabi nor I are dead, what's the biggie?"

"I believe that it has to do with something about you and Buffy that is different than the other slayers," Hermione put forth.

"You mean how we're stronger?" Buffy asked.

"In part," Blake answered her.

"Look, I usually love twenty questions," Faith lied, "but can one of you doctor types get to the point? We do have shit to do." Blake took a deep breath.

"Faith, you and Buffy aren't aging. Not at all, not in any way. I haven't said anything about it before because I wasn't medically certain. But my gut tells me it's a fact, and Hermione found some stuff when she examined you two that reinforced that," Blake said.

"What stuff?" Faith persisted.

"The two of you are kind of immortal," Hermione said flatly.

"We're gods? I don't wanna be a god, the ones I've met sucked," Buffy declared.

"Not gods. Well, I don't think so, anyway. I meant that you and Faith just might not ever die."

"Get the fuck out," Faith said shortly. "Buffy's already died a couple times, and I've come really, really close more than once."

"Buffy's deaths occurred before Willow cast the spell that activated the potentials," Blake replied.

"And that, we believe, is why the two of you are unique," Hermione added.

"I goofed again?" Willow asked, chagrined.

"I wouldn't say that, no," Hermione comforted. "As I understand it, the original magic that created the Slayer made it so there was "one girl in all the world" who would receive the power, correct?"

"Yep," confirmed Buffy, "one terrified kid coping with puberty and an endless supply of demons. Real geniuses, those sorcerers were."

"Quite," agreed Hermione, "and when one Slayer died, another potential slayer received the power, correct?"

"Also yep. Buff died and Kendra was called," Faith narrated, "but Buff didn't stay dead, so there were two. Then Kendra got killed and I was called. So how come the mojo or whatever didn't know there was still a living Slayer after Kendra died?"

"I doubt that the sorcerers who created the Slayer ever considered that someone who was technically dead could be revived. It was a long time ago, I really do think it is as simple as that," Hermione explained. "As for there being two of you, I believe the magic is not equipped to sense that either. It senses a living Slayer, that there are two does not register, although it was of course triggered when one of the two died."

"Sounds a little sloppy on their part," Buffy commented, "but I've met them and they didn't really impress me all that much."

"So okay, I get the part about the two of us well enough," Faith spoke up, "but what about this never dying? Where did that come from?"

"From what I have been able to piece together after talking with Dr. Blake, I believe that happened when Willow's spell broke the link between the current Slayer and the potentials. Look at it this way, the active Slayer is the sun, the potentials are planets, each tethered to the Slayer by magic instead of gravity. Does that make sense?" Hermione asked.

"It does to me," Willow said. Willow was beginning to think that she knew where this was going.

"Makes enough sense for now, anyhow," Buffy agreed, and Faith nodded.

"The effect of the original magic, and indeed part of its intent, was to ensure that there would _always_ be a Slayer. With Willow's spell, the potentials no longer exist. They are all Slayers, but were not really created, or called, by the original magic," Hermione continued.

"Ohh…" whispered Willow.

"Yes," Hermione answered. "Since the magic mandates that there always be a Slayer, and it can no longer sense the potentials to call upon, it has taken up the task of keeping the Slayer alive. Two slayers, really, but the magic doesn't know that."

"Assuming you're right," Buffy said slowly, "do you have any idea how it could have happened? I mean, those old guys were powerful, and so is Willow, but…"

"Willow's spell was performed over the Hellmouth, a place absolutely rampant with magical energy. I speculate that when the break occurred the original magic used that energy to reinforce itself."

"Okay, but short of killing one of us there's no way to test this," Faith pointed out.

"That test has already been completed," Hermione responded. "You passed. What the Avada Kedavra does is bring a life to its end. It causes no physical harm at all."

"It's a little hard to define what 'life' is," Blake added. "There is the accepted definition of feeding and reproducing, but the actual spark that makes a mess of chemicals a living being is harder to pin down, leaving religion aside, I mean."

"Let's do that," Buffy requested, "this is a big enough mess without bringing religion into it."

"What we do know is that animal life ends, always," Blake continued. "Usually the cause is obvious, our bodies break down over time, or there is injury, illness, stuff like that. Your bodies are not breaking down, that much I can prove."

"What about what you said about that curse? What did you mean, exactly, Hermione?" Willow asked.

"Done properly, and this one was, I promise you, that curse simply pushes a life past its ending point. Faith is alive. Therefore it follows that her life will not end, and by extension neither will Buffy's, since magically you are identical," Hermione explained.

"We can't be killed?" Buffy asked.

"That's a little harder to answer," Blake responded. "We know you can be injured, and I thought that Faith nearly died when she got that crossbow wound. By all I know it was very close, but maybe the magic helped as much as Dawn and I did, or more," he shrugged. "I don't know if you'd grow a new limb if you lost one, but it hardly seems worth cutting one off just to see. Likewise I don't know what would happen if you got squashed by a bulldozer or blasted to smithereens. I'm not inclined to test that either."

"Thanks Ricky, we love you too," Buffy said, somewhat dazed.

"So while you are apparently immortal, you do not appear to be invulnerable," Hermione continued. "If Masois had used a cutting or burning spell, things might be different. There is also no way at all to tell if the effect will be permanent, although it will be simple to tell if it ceases to function."

"Okay, so for right now we don't have to worry about dying of old age," Faith said. "Not that I ever figured to. So what good is it, really?"

"That's up to you and Buffy," Ricky told her. "But there is a down side. It's just you two who are like that; everyone else you know is on a clock of some sort."

"Oh. Shit," Faith said as she looked at Willow and Dawn.

"Yeah, that sucks," agreed Buffy. "This is interesting and all, but it's not helping Dawn much that I can see. Let's get that done before Faith and I contemplate what it's going to be like to outlive everyone we love and menstruate forever."

"Oh, _shit_," Faith moaned.

"My sympathies, my friend," Gabrielle said as she patted Faith on the shoulder. " 'Ermione, I require a pensieve." Hermione summoned one and set it on a table, Gabrielle poured the memory she had extracted from Masois into it. "I saw this witch in his mind," Gabrielle told them all, "I do not know her."

"I'll have a look," Hermione said, and she stuck her face in the swirling stuff.

"That's still gross," Faith declared. "Gabi pulled that crap right out of the guy's brain."

"Magic ain't for sissies," Willow confirmed.

"I don't know her either," Hermione said when she had withdrawn her face from the pensieve.

"My turn, what do I do?" Willow asked.

"Just put your face in the pensieve, as you would if it was filled with water and you wanted to rinse in it. It will feel cool, and there will be a slight falling sensation. You will view this witch as if you were Masois, as it is his memory. When you are done, just do as you would if you were going to walk away," Hermione instructed her.

"Okay," Willow replied, and she lowered her face into the pensieve.

After a few moments Willow's hair turned black, and when she raised her face from the bowl her eyes were glittering obsidian, her face a map of dark veins.

_"Amy,"_ she hissed, and the house trembled.


	15. Chapter 15

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 15<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG 13<p>

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1585

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 15

"Fire in the Sky"

"Who?" Hermione asked.

"A witch of our acquaintance who has used up all of her chances," Buffy said grimly.

"She has caused trouble before?" Gabrielle asked, clearly surprised.

"We're slayers," Faith explained, "we have this whole 'don't kill humans', thing. But Amy has definitely earned a spot on the exception list."

"I wouldn't have thought that she was up to this kind of spell. Willow, what do you think?" Buffy asked.

"She isn't, this spell is beyond her, as is the power needed," Willow said coldly, struggling to suppress her rage. "But she instigated it. She planned it. She was aided by both god and mortal and I am going to strip that power from her. Get your scythes; you two are immortals now, so it's time to meet the family."

Willow was panting, and the shaking of the house intensified.

"What the hell is going – oh," said Amanda as she rushed into the room.

"It's okay, Amanda," Buffy told her. "Faith and Will and I have a lead to run down. You're in charge here. You guys watch over Dawn, okay?"

"Ready," said Faith as her hand tightened on the Lion Scythe.

"Good here," echoed Buffy as she grasped her own weapon.

"See you later," Willow said in a strange voice, and she led them outside.

"Best to stand back," Blake cautioned Hermione and Gabrielle. "This isn't as tidy as Apparition."

A black cloud formed around Buffy, Faith, and Willow and lightning arced from Willow's fingers. There was a stupendous clap of thunder and the cloud shot into the sky and rapidly vanished, carrying the three within it.

"What are they doing?" Hermione asked after they had returned to Dawn's room, still a bit shaken by that display of Willow's power.

"Storming heaven," Blake answered. "Our job is Dawn, though," he said, and his eyes turned to the instruments. "She's restless, that green stuff is swirling more violently. Doctor Granger, I think it's time for you to meet Dawn."

"She doesn't know me."

"I'll bet she does. In any case, we aren't liable to get ahead with me talking to her. I can support her body well enough, but this is magic we're dealing with," Blake insisted.

"He is correct, my love," Gabrielle said, "and you need 'zee rest in any case. Go, snuggle up to the Avatar and converse. I shall work with 'zee slayers on protecting themselves from spells. Please give my regards to Dawn, and extend my compliments to her on her partner. Faith is extraordinary, even by my standards."

Hermione fought down a yawn.

"But –"

"But me no buts," Gabrielle said imperiously, "drink 'zis. It is not dreamless sleep of course, since dreaming might be key, but you need rest, and Dawn needs to know what is 'appening, nest ce pas?"

"I don't deserve you," Hermione said fervently, and she embraced Gabrielle and kissed her.

"Per'aps not," allowed Gabrielle, "give my regards to the lovely Dawn, and tell 'er that I stand with her Faith. Together we shall bring her back, d'accord?"

"Yes we will," Hermione replied. "Should we ask Fleur for help?"

"Not yet," Gabi answered. "But if we need 'er she will be here."

"She always is," Hermione responded, and she drank the potion and lay down beside Dawn.

" 'Ermione can help her if anyone can," Gabrielle assured Ricky.

"Of that I have no doubt," he responded. "Mandy, I could use a hug, this shit makes my head hurt."

"Sure, baby," Amanda said as she wrapped him in her arms. "This will all work out okay."

"Maybe, but things are about to change, somewhere."

"Do you normally get the Aurora Borealis here?" asked Candace as she entered the room.

"No," Gabrielle replied.

"Then you might want to come see this," Candace suggested.

Gabrielle followed Candace, while Amanda and Ricky stayed to watch over Dawn and Hermione.

"I'm sorry this rained on your parade, Mandy," Ricky said as he embraced his wife. "You deserved the parties, the adulation. You were unbelievable."

"It's okay baby," Amanda assured him. "The fun is in the driving. And the winning, we'll get them again."

"Yes we will," Ricky told her, "Heffner has a few ideas."

"Me too," Amanda promised, "but they'll keep."

"God, I love you, Amanda," Ricky said.

"I know you do, and I love you. Funny how things work out sometimes, huh?"

_"You must be Doctor Granger, I'm Dawn, pleased to meet you," Dawn greeted Hermione._

_ "My pleasure, and please call me Hermione. Not that that's any shorter, mind you."_

_ "Not much," agreed Dawn, "but it's a pretty name." _

_ "Thank you, Faith tells me that you have a fair idea of what's going on, is that right?"_

_ "Yes, I could feel the spell take hold and try and separate me from the stream, so I just fell into it. I have always been connected to it of course, even when I didn't know it existed. The power for the magic that created me came from the stream, it's the only adequate source," Dawn explained._

_ "I should think so, and I hope you don't mind my saying that I've never seen magic like that, like you, I mean. It's a little confusing at times for you, I expect," Hermione sympathized._

_ 'It used to be, yeah. I'm comfortable with it now, though. And even if all of you can't break the spell, I'll be fine, just different. I wouldn't change by choice at this point, but my mortal existence has a limit, I know that. Everyone's does."_

_ "Usually, yes," Hermione agreed, "Buffy and Faith may be the exceptions to that."_

_ "How so?" Dawn asked, and Hermione explained what was going on with them._

_ "Huh. I can't say I'd like an eternity of monthly cramps, but I'm glad they'll have each other after Willow and I have moved on," Dawn told her._

_ "Buffy said something similar, you really are very alike, it's fascinating! Oh, please excuse me; I get a little carried away with new knowledge."_

_ "That's okay, I'm lucky you're here, like I said, I'm not anxious to give up my life. We've only recently really settled in together, it's wonderful," Dawn said with a smile._

_ "Buffy, Faith, and Willow have gone to get a witch called Amy who had a hand in this," Hermione explained, "that's why I'm here. It seems to slow the progress of the spell when someone is with you like this."_

_ "It does," Dawn confirmed, "when I'm alone the stream calls to me. It gets difficult to resist the urge to simply return to it."_

_ "I see, well then, we'll make sure someone is with you as much as possible," Hermione promised._

_ "Thank you, just not Marty, please. She's okay, but she has this huge crush on Faith, so we aren't all that comfortable together. She can't help how she feels and I don't blame her for it, but Faith doesn't feel that way about her, so it's awkward," Dawn informed Hermione._

_ "I see, umm, well, Faith is extremely attractive, I have to agree there," Hermione said hesitantly. Dawn grinned._

"_Faith really likes you, and she breally/b likes Gabrielle."_

_ "Oh! Please don't wor-"_

_ "Stop. I'm not worried. I'm glad that the two of you are there. You see, Faith has a problem with being loved. It took time for her to really believe that I love her, and I promise you that I made it as plain as I could, and even longer to be comfortable that Buffy and Willow love her too. Faith has an enormous capacity for love, but she doubts herself in that regard. I know that she has strong feelings for Gabrielle, and you too. So I want to ask a favor," Dawn told Hermione._

_ "Anything," Hermione promised._

_ "If I do not recover, if I fade into the stream, love her. Hold her and love her for me until I find a way to let her know that I am still with her."_

_ "But…"_

_ "I know that she would still have Buffy and Willow, but please, let her know that others can love her too. I don't necessarily mean sex, though that's fine, just let her see that you care for her. My one fear in all of this is that Faith will fall back into doubt. She is too precious for that to happen. Please, I know that you and Gabrielle have feelings for her, let her see them, I beg you," Dawn asked._

_ "We will," promised Hermione, "but I believe that we will succeed. Gabrielle wanted me to tell you that she will stand with Faith. They are much alike, I think, and Gabrielle is quite skilled and powerful. With those two, Buffy, and Willow… well I'll just say that I have never seen an assemblage of power like that. Together they are astounding."_

_ "They're pretty special all right," Dawn agreed._

"_You are special as well. The world does not have enough Avatars to lose one."_

_ "How many are there?" _

_ "Counting you?" Hermione asked, and Dawn nodded in affirmation._

_ "One."_

Gabrielle stood outside in the fading light with the slayers, all of them staring at the sky. Coruscating bands of color streaked the firmament, punctuated by occasional bright flashes of red or gold. There was a sound of far distant thunder like the tolling of great bells, and a faint, sizzling, hissing sound that underscored it all.

"I 'ave never experienced anything like this," Gabrielle told them, "what do you suppose it is?"

"A very angry lion," Ryuki replied.


	16. Chapter 16

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 16<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Language, Series Level Violence

Word Count: 3800

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 16

"The Lion at War"

"Where are we, Will?" Buffy asked, looking around at the mountainous countryside revealed when the storm dissipated.

"Call it Olympus," Willow said. "It's actually open for debate whether or not this place even exists. But this is where Amy is supposed to be. Things are a little strange here, time is different, magic is everywhere, and there are rules in place that even gods cannot violate. I'm stronger when I'm here, and so are you. Actually, I'm really a goddess here. I don't much like the place, so when I move in there will be some changes. No worries though, it won't be anytime soon, promise. Also, actions that seem physical sometimes are not, so don't be too surprised if I seem different to you as well. Follow me." Willow led the way up a narrow, twisting, path.

"Does Willow look a little taller to you?" Faith asked Buffy.

"Some, yeah. I'm kind of scared, Faith. She wasn't this jacked up when she nearly destroyed the world."

"Good thing this isn't the world then, but I'm glad it's not me she's pissed off at," Faith replied.

A huge boulder blocked the path, and at a gesture from Willow it crumbled into sand and blew away.

"Me too," Buffy agreed.

Soon enough the path leveled out and they emerged into a sort of courtyard. There were statues arranged around it, couches, tables with food and drink, and a very uneasy looking Hecate approaching them.

"Willow, how nice to see y-"

Hecate's welcome ceased abruptly when Willow seized her by the throat and held her aloft.

"Where is Amy?" Willow asked pleasantly. "You were supposed to keep her here. You remember that you were supposed to keep her here, don't you Hecate?"

"Guess that's why she got taller," Faith whispered to Buffy.

"Urrkkh – can't – akkkhhh" gasped Hecate.

"Oh, sorry," Willow said, not sounding sorry at all, but she did set Hecate down on her feet and loosen her grip. A little, anyway.

"I do, and I tried, but she's not mine anymore," Hecate rushed to explain. "You must know that when she switched allegiance my influence over her nearly vanished."

"You could have killed her, or turned her back into a rat, couldn't you? You were really supposed to watch her, Hecate. I'm disappointed in you."

The ground shook. So did Hecate.

"No, she couldn't," said a smiling Amy as she stepped out from behind a pillar. "You see, I upgraded. Meet my new fella."

"I have told you not to call me that, Amy," said a tall man moving to stand beside her. He had on a loincloth and sandals, and wore a sword with the ease of long acquaintance. He was powerfully muscled, and had luxuriantly curly black hair and a pointed beard. "Ares, God of War, I have heard much about you, Willow."

"Not enough, apparently," Willow corrected him, "or you would never have let your little whore harm someone I love." Ares waved it off.

Willow held out her free hand, and a huge shadowy version of it closed around Ares' waist and lifted him into the air. Willow squeezed, and Ares' face blackened as he struggled to free himself. Lightning flared from the huge hand.

"Hey! You can't do that," Amy protested.

"Wrong again, bitch, and your turn is coming," Willow promised.

The ground trembled more, and a crack ran across the courtyard when Willow slammed Ares to the marble tiles.

"Shall we start over?" Willow asked in a gentle voice that caused Buffy and Faith to take a step back.

Ares lay panting for a moment before regaining his feet.

"Perhaps that would be best," he allowed. "I am aware of your power, and that some day you shall likely rank above me here. You must however realize that if I choose to aid my pet in her whims among the mortals as a reward for good service that it is my right as a god to do so. Amy gives _very_ good service," Ares said with an insolent smile. Amy simpered. "You also know that you cannot destroy me, though I admit that you surprised me most painfully a moment ago. I also grant that a battle between us would be a magnificent thing that you likely would indeed win. But even if you won such a contest, you could not take her from me. Laws were set in place long ago to regulate our actions amongst ourselves. First among these is the one preventing any god from harming or interfering with another god's pet mortals. We are a jealous lot, you see," he explained, still smiling.

"I don't like him," Buffy announced.

"I don't see where that would stop _me_ from harming her," Faith spoke up.

"Who gave you permission to speak, mortal? Willow, you should have better control of your pets. My compliments on them by the way, they are fabulous," Ares declared.

"What's this 'pet' stuff, Will? I don't like it much," Buffy asked. To this point Buffy did not much care for Olympus or it inhabitants.

"In this case it refers to a mortal a god takes into his or her service, I'll straighten him out on that in a minute," Willow responded." The bigger problem is that he's right. Any god who still has followers cannot be destroyed, and we all know how big a following this guy has. I could burn him, skin him, or tear off his limbs, but he would recover quickly and it still wouldn't get us Amy. Faith might even be able to kill her, but that wouldn't help us either," Willow explained

"This place sucks," Buffy declared.

"You could tear off a couple things just to see if it changes his mind," Faith suggested.

"That would work with some of them," Willow admitted, "but not Ares. He's not the God of War for nothing. You saw how he responded to what I did, and I promise, that was painful."

"So we're stuck?" Buffy asked.

"Not yet, we'll find a work-around. Ares is just being a dick, he can't really care that much for Amy," Willow answered.

Willow then seemed to realize that she still had Hecate by the neck, and she released her.

"Don't go anywhere; I have a few things to talk over with you." Hecate nodded and rubbed her throat, but she didn't move. Some gods really didn't care for pain, not when it was their own, at any rate.

"These women are not mortals, and they are not my pets, they are my lovers, as was the woman Amy caused to be attacked."

"Not mortals? They are not gods, or I would know it, but I do sense their immortality, now that you point it out. Fascinating, but hardly to the point, it is also unfortunate that the object of Amy's whim is dear to you, but as you have not yet claimed your godhood the rule does not apply," Ares said dismissively.

Willow glanced at a statue of Ares, and it shattered into bits. Ares applauded.

"Marvelous! I never liked that one anyway. Tear the whole place down, please! I'd love to watch you work," Ares told her.

"I don't like him either," Faith said to Buffy.

"Were you aware that the woman Amy attacked is an Avatar?" Willow asked Ares, and he frowned.

"I was not. Had I known that I might not have indulged her, Avatars are interesting creatures. Speak, girl, why did you do this?"

"Revenge," Amy spat. "They are responsible for me being a plaything here. I was never good enough for them. 'You're a bad influence, Amy'. 'Stay away from here, Amy.' The only person you ignored more than me was that little brat of a sister of Buffy's. Then she gets a little magic and all of a sudden you're all lining up to kiss her and who knows what else. What about ME? What about MY magic? Did any of you ever think about me? I could tell that she was the glue holding you together, so I went after her. How fuckin' happy are you now, you cunts?"

"She has a point," Ares said, "revenge is a powerful motive, and were this woman not an Avatar I would find no fault in her actions. The fault is not all hers, however."

"Bullshit," said Faith, "rat girl is full of it. Tear him to bits, Willow. Buffy and I will grab Amy and we'll shag outta here. She'll be easier to carry once I cut her legs off."

"As tempting as that is, it's not that simple," Willow told her, "unless Ares releases her, she literally cannot be taken from here."

"Can't we just question her here, then?" Buffy asked.

"I'll see," Willow replied.

"Will you allow us to question her here?" Willow asked.

"Alas, I fear that you would damage her in your anger, and so I must refuse." Amy smiled. "However…" The smile vanished. "Since she did attack an Avatar, I would be willing to offer an exchange, purely as a gesture of good will."

"An exchange?"

"Yes, one of your immortal mortal pets, or lovers, or whatever you prefer to call them, for Amy." Amy looked terrified.

"Screw this! I'm done messing around with David Hasselhoff, here," Faith declared angrily, and she stalked over to Ares.

"I'll tell you what, asshole, you beat me in a fair fight and I'll stay with you. Those big tits of Amy's will be banging on her knees in a few years. I'm hotter than she is now, and I'll be just as hot a thousand years from now. Are you up for it, or is that big old sword just to compensate for a tiny little dick?" Faith said aggressively.

Ares was dumbfounded.

"That's our girl," Buffy said in admiration.

"You insolent bitch!" spat Ares.

"Sticks and stones, motherfucker. What's wrong? Afraid to fight a girl? Do we have a deal, or is that sword all floppy like your pecker is?"

There was a ringing as Ares drew his sword, it was a crimson-bladed katana, and flames flickered along its edge.

"We have a deal, fool," he agreed, his voice trembling in rage. "Witness all, the challenge, given and accepted!"

"Heard and witnessed!" announced several gods and goddesses who had appeared to watch.

With no further word, Ares' crimson sword cut a fiery path towards Faith's neck. There was a hissing response, and the Lion Scythe met the God of War's sword with a ring like a hundred cathedral bells, and red and gold fire leapt up.

Ares betrayed surprise for an instant, but then the lust of battle overcame him.

Faith too was caught up in the contest, but she kept her mind clear and drew on all that she had learned through the years with Yoshi, perhaps the greatest mortal swordsman ever to live. Their training sessions were private now; the things they did were too advanced for even the most senior students to follow. Yoshi was the master.

Faith could defeat him now.

Ares, however, was a god; moreover, he was the God of War. Battle was meat to him, the cries of the injured and dying a symphony to his ears.

Faith simply did not give the least part of a damn who he was.

He was standing between her and saving Dawn, and therefore he would fall.

"She is magnificent," breathed Hecate. Wagers were made among the watching divinities.

It was a whirlwind of fire and glittering steel, the sword and the scythe clashing and rending the heavens with their thunder.

As Willow had said, time was different there. Back in France the slayers had long since torn themselves away from the display in the heavens and paid careful attention to Gabrielle as she explained how to avoid curses.

_"Ask Candace if they brought the book," Dawn suggested to Hermione._

_ "What book?"_

_ "You'll see. I think you'll like it, and it should help you with the counterspell if you need it," Dawn told her._

_ "Good, I know a fair bit from examining the dart, but after we get some answers from whoever actually cast the spell I might need to make some changes," Hermione mused._

_ "You're waking up," Dawn said with a smile, "you're going transparent. I'd like to talk with Gabrielle if that's possible. I'm picking up some things from Faith through the magic of her scythe, Gabrielle has handled it and knows Faith. Being with her might make things clearer."_

_ "Of course, she must need some rest by now in any case." _

_ Dawn hugged her, and then their eyes met._

_ "Thank you," Dawn whispered, and she leaned toward Hermione. But before their lips touched, Hermione had faded out altogether._

"Bugger," Hermione said upon opening her eyes.

"Hello to you too, my love," Gabrielle greeted her. "I trust that you are rested, it has been nearly ten hours."

"Really? And I am quite rested, thank you. Dawn wants to see you, she believes that your presence might help her understand some feelings she is getting from Faith. Something must be going on."

"Something surely is," Gabrielle informed her, "go and have a look at the sky." Gabrielle yawned hugely. "I am sleepy, kiss me goodnight before you go." Hermione obliged, and Gabrielle settled in beside Dawn, putting an arm around her.

"There's more green," Blake announced, pointing at the globe.

"Without more information and especially the person who cast the spell there is little more that we can do," Hermione replied, looking critically at the globe. There was undeniably more green. "Do you know where Candace is?"

"The kitchen I think, slayers take a lot of fuel. Amanda brought a little food in while you were asleep."

"Thank you, I'm hungry myself," admitted Hermione. "We'll save her, Ricky."

"I hope so, but I'm afraid they might have met their match this time."

Hermione went outside and looked at the sky in wonder. She found that she now shared Doctor Blake's concern, but as there was nothing that she could do about it the practical side of her mind took charge and reminded her that she did indeed have to eat. She turned away from the spectacle and went to the kitchen

"This is "a little food"," Hermione asked when she saw the laden table and the neat stacks of containers against the wall.

"We had catering all set up for a big party," Amanda explained. "We cancelled that, and I went and got the food so we'd have enough without anybody having to cook. Slayers tend to eat a lot, especially when we're tense."

"So I see," Hermione said in wonder as she watched the slayers eat. "Will they kill me if I take some food?"

"Of course not! Ummm, just don't take anything off their plates," Amanda advised.

_"Hi, Gabrielle, thanks for coming," Dawn greeted her._

_ "It is wonderful to meet you," Gabrielle replied. Gabrielle was a little uncertain what to do next, and apparently it showed._

_ Dawn solved the problem neatly by embracing her and kissing her briefly but firmly on the lips._

_ "You've kissed Faith," Dawn stated with a smile. Gabrielle blushed._

_ "Oui, but you must understand, she 'ad just saved my life," Gabrielle explained._

_ "Please don't worry, it's fine with me. More than fine, actually, since it will help with what I want to do. The magic in Faith's scythe, and in mine, is based on the power of our love for each other. We have a connection to each other through those weapons. As our love has grown over time, so has the magic gotten stronger," Dawn explained._

_ "I felt this magic when I held the Lion Scythe," acknowledged Gabrielle._

_ "Since you are sensitive to that magic, and since you and Faith have strong feelings for each other, you being here with me will reinforce that connection. Something is happening with Faith, and I want to know what. And just to be clear, whether I return from this or not, anything at all that you and Faith want to explore together is fine with me. Our relationship is not threatened, and frankly I can see why she is attracted to you. Apart from your beauty there is something about you that reminds me of her, an inner strength, a purpose," Dawn told her._

_ "Oui, we do have things in common, and as you say I am indeed attracted to her. You are also correct that something is 'appening, the sky is on fire. What must I do to help?"_

_ "Just take my hands and think of Faith," Dawn answered._

_ The two women joined hands as they stood together on the bank of the stream. Blue fire flickered as usual over Dawn as she exerted her power, but there was an undeniable greenish tint to it now. Gabrielle thought of Faith, she saw in her memory, recalled Faith's speed and power as she had thrust Gabrielle from the path of danger, putting herself at risk. She recalled the feel of the arms that embraced her…_

_ Dawn gasped, and her eyes met Gabrielle's._

_ "Did you learn some'zing?" Gabi asked anxiously._

_ "Faith is fighting," Dawn said slowly._

_ "Then someone is about to taste defeat at her hands," Gabrielle said confidently._

_ "She's fighting a __**god**__, Gabrielle. Ares, the God of War."_

_ To Dawn's wonder, Gabrielle smiled._

_ "It is no matter, she is fighting for you, and so she will triumph. Also, you are with her, tell her so, and trust in your lion."_

Ares was both stunned and elated, never before had he been so matched. He could scarcely credit it, but he had to admire the skill and the power of the woman facing him. If he could but win – with her by his side –

Faith grudgingly admitted that Ares was likely as good as Yoshi. Almost, anyway, and he was certainly stronger. She remembered her training and looked for the weakness that was sure to be there.

The fury of the battle toppled statues; the ringing crash of the blades broke bottles of wine.

"Come on, Faith," whispered Buffy urgently, "you can do it." All of the spectators were quiet, realizing the rarity of this spectacle.

Faith felt something touch her mind through the scythe's magic.

_ "I'm with you, always…"_

The touch of Dawn's mind gave Faith new strength, and the blow she delivered sent Ares reeling back. Faith gave him no time to recover, and the Dark Lion roared as she pressed her attack.

"Welcome to the big leagues, rat-fucker," Faith said with a grin.

Blow followed blow faster than thought, and even the gods covered their ears. Back she drove him, and Ares was hard pressed even to parry now, a hiss of pain passed his lips. He was not tired, for he was after all a god. He was simply overmatched and overpowered. To his credit, he never considered cheating; battle was sacred to him even as the possibility of defeat entered his mind.

Faith saw that moment in his eyes, and she struck with blinding speed and overwhelming power, and the red sword dropped to the ground still clutched in his hand. Faith stood poised to strike again should Ares wish to continue the discussion.

_"Gods don't bleed,"_ Faith noted, seeing that neither the deep cut across the front of his thighs nor the stump of his wrist were bleeding, _"so I guess me and Buff aren't gods. She'll be happy about that."_

"Will you permit me to recover my sword and continue the fight with my remaining hand?" Ares asked politely.

"Yes," Faith answered. Ares smiled, and nodded his thanks.

"I appreciate the courtesy, but I see no point in continuing. I am fairly bested, Amy is yours. I thank you for the contest; there has never been such a battle! I am not shamed by your victory."

"You're welcome. I gotta admit, it was one hell of a fight," Faith granted, returning the smile as she recognized in him another warrior. The courtyard was in shambles, and the spectators had withdrawn to a considerable distance.

While she thought that everyone was watching this exchange, Amy tried to slip away.

"No you don't, bitch," Buffy informed her as she rendered her unconscious.

Willow went to stand beside Faith, and she wanted desperately to embrace her but this was not the time or place. Willow was laying groundwork here. She did however whisper something to Faith before returning to have a word with Hecate.

"I believe I get your sword, right?" Faith queried.

"Indeed you do, I was rather hoping that no one would mention that," Ares admitted with a pained grimace. "Ah well, a new blade will give me something to look forward to while I recover. You may as well have the scabbard along with it. Might I ask your name?"

"Faith, it's Faith," she replied.

"A mete name for the conqueror of War. I would be honored to have you at my side, Faith, should you ever wish it. As an equal, of course," he added hurriedly.

"Thanks. For a god, you're sort of okay, and I guess all the wars aren't really your fault, huh?"

"No, I supervise, and even instigate on occasion. But that is seldom needed, mankind needs little urging to war."

"Are we ready to go?" Buffy asked, arriving with Amy over her shoulder. "You were great, Faith! Yoshi would be proud. You were pretty good too, Hoff."

"I don't understand, 'Hoff'?" queried Ares.

"Best not to know," Faith assured him, and she extended her left hand, as Ares only had that one remaining at the moment. Ares clasped her hand, but he could not resist the urge to squeeze it. Faith merely smiled blandly and matched his effort.

"It's not, you know," Ares said as he released his grip.

"Not what?"

"Floppy."

"Little bit, yeah. Just now, anyhow," Faith responded, pointing off to the side. Ares paled.

"I'll give it to you, you can take a beating. I hope that grows back okay, and next time be more careful who you stick that thing in. And who you loan your power to."

Ares was still staring at his severed member and trying to recall just when that had happened when Buffy and Faith joined Willow where she was talking with Hecate.

"Are we ready now?" Buffy asked. "Slayer strength or not, Amy here is a load."

"Just about; so you'll let me know if any more pet witches show up here, right, Hecate?"

"Immediately. I wish to me I'd left her a rat," muttered Hecate as she wandered off.

"Can you send this sword to my weapons locker back home?" Faith asked Willow.

"Sure, but don't you want to show it off?"

"Not yet, and please don't mention it to anyone. I have plans for this thing."


	17. Chapter 17

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 17<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Language, Series Level Violence

Word Count: 2000

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 17

"The Colors of a Mind"

"This is the witch that was involved with kidnapping Giles, isn't it?" Kennedy asked Willow, looking at the unconscious form lying on the ground in front of the house.

"Yep," confirmed Willow.

"She causes more than her share of trouble, doesn't she?"

"Yep," Willow further agreed.

"Uhh, we're going to fix that this time, right?" Ryuki inquired.

"Yep," promised Buffy.

"Oh yeah," Faith added.

"Dibs," reminded Willow.

"Wake up, bitch," Amanda suggested, emptying a bottle of water on Amy's head.

"Where am I?" mumbled Amy.

"Hell," Faith informed her, and she jerked Amy upright.

"Osiris, I call upon thee-" began Amy.

"Oh shut up," Willow commanded in exasperation, and with a gesture Amy's mouth vanished. "Even you aren't stupid enough to think that any of the gods are going to help you after what just happened. You get that, right?"

Amy glared at Willow, hatred plain on her face, but at length she nodded.

"You have a very slim chance of getting out of this alive. A ivery/i slim chance, and that requires you to cooperate completely with us in helping Dawn. Do you understand that?" Willow asked quietly.

Amy nodded again, the hatred on her face giving way to terror as she realized that Willow meant every word she said and that she was indeed entirely on her own.

_"They're back," Dawn informed Gabrielle._

_ "Bon, and they were successful?"_

_ "Yes, Faith defeated Ares, and they have Amy with them. You should go, they will need you when they question her," Dawn told her._

_ "Of course, do you wish me to tell Faith anything?"_

_ "She already knows. Thank you for your help, Gabrielle. Without you I couldn't have seen what was happening. I might not have reached Faith in time."_

_ "You are most welcome, but she would have triumphed anyway. She is the Dark Lion, after all," Gabrielle replied._

_ "Yes, she is. Kiss her for me, will you? Wait until you're alone so that you can do it right, like this…"_

_ Dawn took Gabrielle in her arms, and their lips met gently. It was a soft kiss that managed nevertheless to convey great passion, and Gabrielle's chest was heaving when at last the kiss broke._

_ "You give her that from me," Dawn told her softly, "and whether I get back from this or not, give her everything else as well, and let her give to you. You are a match for her, and that is a very rare thing."_

_ Gabrielle could not speak, but she pressed her hand to Dawn's face as she faded._

_ Dawn sat on the bank of the stream and waited, the stream called to her, and the green mist swirled agitatedly in the globe._

"They just got back," Ricky told Gabrielle when she rose.

"I shall join them at once, someone should be with Dawn, though." 

"Who?"

"That, you would know better than I," Gabrielle answered him, and she headed for the front door.

Ricky yawned.

"What the hell," he said, and he stretched out beside Dawn and took her hand.

" 'Zis is her?" Gabrielle asked upon joining the group.

"This is Amy," Faith told her, "Amy, say hi to Gabrielle. Oh, right, nevermind. Where should we go to have a little chat with her?"

"The back garden, 'zere is no sense in messing up the house," Gabrielle said after a moment, "follow me."

Amy started sweating, and Buffy and Faith had to support her as they walked because her legs were a little rubbery.

"Here," Gabrielle said, "the grass is thickest here."

Amy's knees buckled.

"Wimp," muttered Willow, "she can dish it out but she can't take it." Willow gestured and Amy was suspended spread-eagle several inches above the ground. "We're going to ask you some questions, Amy, so I'm going to restore your mouth. If you lie, if you evade, if you threaten, if you bitch and moan or do anything other than answer these questions completely and honestly, I will burn the memories from your mind. I've already done that to Ethan Rayne. You remember him, right?" Amy nodded, her eyes bulging. "You know what that will do to you, right?" Amy nodded again, emphatically this time.

"Pardonez-moi," Gabrielle said to Willow, "may I address the prisoner?"

"Sure thing," Willow replied. Faith grinned.

"I am Gabrielle Delacour, Section Chief of the Special Branch of the French Ministry of Magic's Law Enforcement Directorate. You have perpetrated a potentially fatal magical attack in my jurisdiction. I inform you that under these circumstances my authority over this is absolute. If I choose to skin the bottoms of your feet, I have the authority to do so. Do you understand?" Amy nodded wildly. Gabrielle produced a knife and knelt down, placing the edge gently against the bottom of Amy's foot. She looked up into Amy's bulging eyes. "Do you have the slightest doubt that I will do this and worse to you, should I feel that you are not cooperating fully?" Gabrielle asked softly, and she moved back to avoid the sudden warm shower that accompanied Amy's expression of faith in Gabrielle's veracity.

"Bien," Gabrielle said, and she stood and patted Amy gently on the cheek. "When Willow gives you your mouth back, you will not mind drinking a truth serum, will you? I give you my word that it is harmless, it merely compels you to tell the truth, and you were going to tell us the truth anyway, weren't you?"

Amy's nose was running a little now, but she managed to convey her willingness to drink the veritaserum.

"I believe that she is feeling cooperative," Gabrielle announced.

"Scary little thing, isn't she?" Ryuki whispered to Faith.

"Extremely, and she's not bluffing. Not one little bit," Faith replied.

"She's one of us. She gets it, doesn't she?"

"Yeah, she does," Faith confirmed.

"There is nothing in the world hotter than that," Ryuki said flatly.

"Nope," agreed Faith.

"Why is this bitch wearing a toga?" Amanda asked. "Was she at a frat party or something?"

"I think it's some sort of kink thing," Buffy answered.

"Yeah, apparently Ares liked easy access," Faith ventured, "not that he's gonna need that for a while."

"Oh, because we have his girl, huh?" Amanda asked.

"No, because Faith cut his pecker off," Buffy replied, unable to suppress a grin.

"Good for you, Shishi – Sama," Gabrielle said with a grin of her own.

"Okay Amy, time for a chat," Willow gestured and Amy's mouth returned

"Drink this," Gabrielle told her as she held a small vial to Amy's mouth. Amy drank eagerly.

"Now then," Willow began, "tell me all about the spell that you used on that dart…"

_"Hi Ricky, nice of you to stop by," Dawn greeted Blake._

_ "Hi sweetheart, how are you holding up?"_

_ "Okay, I'm not in any pain. I'm not even really scared; I just don't want to leave the world yet."_

_ "We aren't ready for you to leave either. The girls will get it done, and we've got some friends helping. What do you think of Gabrielle and Hermione?" he asked._

_ "They're great, Gabrielle reminds me of Faith, and Hermione is kind of like Willow, only without the really dark side. Whatever happens to me, they will be good friends."_

_ "I think so too, Dr. Granger is going to work with me on Buffy and Faith, she can go at it from the magic side of things, oh, did you…"_

_ "Yes, I know they aren't aging. Hermione and I talked about that some. Life is interesting, isn't it, Ricky?"_

_ "It sure is."_

"All right, so you used Beltran's Malady as the base of the spell, I get that, but I don't think you're powerful enough to pull that off, Amy," Willow said frankly. Gabrielle tested the edge of her knife.

"Ares! Ares gave me the power!"

"You do know what the counterspell requires, don't you?" Willow asked her, and Amy trembled.

"She's like a Chihuahua, without the cute," Buffy commented.

"I know, but I didn't actually cast the spell, so it won't do you any good to cut my heart out!" Amy cried.

"It would be valuable practice," Gabrielle said.

"Who cast the spell, Amy?"

"Gourmand de la Mort, they wouldn't tell me the spell to bind my curse to the dart, so they had to do the casting," Amy explained. I gave them Ares' power to use."

"What is their real name?"

"I don't know, and I'd never seen them before we met!"

"Describe them," Willow demanded.

"They were – I can't remember…"

"Bullshit, Gabi, lend me your knife, please" Faith asked.

"I swear it! I remember going to the meeting, and I remember giving them the spell, and the payment, but I can't remember anything at all about them! Nothing!" Amy was clearly desperate.

"What was the payment?" Willow asked her.

"A necklace once owned by Cleopatra, Ares gave me lots of jewelry," Amy supplied.

"What did it look like?"

"I can draw it for you, if you'll let me. It's heavy and elaborate, gold with rubies and sapphires," Amy offered eagerly.

"Is this really the best you can do, Amy?" Willow asked in disappointment, idly weaving her cat's cradle of lightning.

"I'm telling you all I can remember!"

"I shall be the judge of that," Gabrielle replied, and Amy screamed as Gabrielle approached her.

"Legilimens," said Gabrielle, and the screaming stopped.

"What is she doing?" Amanda asked.

"Reading her mind, near enough," explained Faith.

"Shouldn't take long," Buffy ventured.

Moments later Gabrielle gave a flick of her wand, and Amy slumped into unconsciousness.

"First, let me say that if it were up to me this woman would not survive this incident. She was abused horribly by her mother, yes, but so have others been, without descending into evil. More to the point, however, there is a problem. Her memory has been modified, and quite skillfully. Wherever there should be a memory that could lead to identifying Gourmand de la Mort, there is only fog. I could not break through 'zis modification, and I am quite skilled in doing so," Gabrielle reported.

"Well, sucks to be Amy I guess," Willow said, and the lightning danced between her palms.

"One moment, as I understand it, what you do strips the knowledge from the subject's mind, correct?"

"Yes."

"And in so doing in essence destroys the mind, does it not?" Gabrielle persisted.

"Yes, but like you said, she has it coming," Willow said with a shrug.

"Indeed she does, but the problem here is that the knowledge you seek is not really in her mind. That is to say it is not in it in any recognizable form. All that you can strip from her mind concerning our subject is the fog. And afterward there will be no further chance of recovering it," Gabrielle explained.

"But what else can we try?" Willow asked. "You said you couldn't get past this block, and you're good at it, right?"

"I am skilled, yes," admitted Gabrielle, "but there is one far more skilled than I. I believe that we should have them try to rebuild these memories. Once we have the information we need you may do with her as you wish. Officially she was never here."

"How long will it take to get this expert here? We're working against the clock," Buffy asked.

"Not long, I should think, and if she fails 'zen Willow can still try skinning her mind," Gabrielle answered. "Shall I contact them?"

"Please do," Faith decided for them all, "it seems to me it's riskier to wreck her mind and maybe not get the answers we need than to hold up for a while."

"That makes sense," Willow admitted, "I can always fry her later."

"I agree," Buffy said, "so who is this expert?"

"My sister, Fleur."

A/N: I am going to be traveling and have a guest for the next week or so, so the next chapter might be longer in coming than usual. I have tried not to leave it as too much of a cliffie.


	18. Chapter 18

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 18<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Reference to incest

Word Count: 1000

These characters belong to J K Rowling and Joss Whedon

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 18

"Irresistable"

"Please excuse me, I shall go and contact Fleur," Gabrielle said, and she departed.

"I'm really tired of Amy," Willow told the others.

"So say we all," Ryuki agreed.

"Battlestar again?" Buffy asked.

"I've got a thing for Boomer," Ryuki admitted. "Also Starbuck."

"A girl's gotta have a dream," Faith agreed, "but I thought you liked that tall French woman."

"Nicolette is no dream, but a pleasure postponed temporarily," Ryuki informed her.

In the sitting room, Gabrielle tossed a pinch of powder into the fire and then thrust her head into the greenish flames. Hermione was beside her when she pulled it out a few moments later.

"The slayers have a book that is all books," Hermione said, "I can't wait to see it!"

"I'm sure, my love. Faith has triumphed; the witch they sought is in the back garden. Her memory 'as been modified however, and I cannot break through, even under veritaserum," Gabrielle told Hermione.

"Oh, then you called Fleur?"

"Oui, she is going to Apparate to the garden, we must go and warn zee slayers. Fleur is coming directly from an assembly meeting," Gabrielle explained, and Hermione flushed even as she turned to go to the garden.

"Fleur will be 'ere momentarily, I must explain to you that my sister is a bit different from the women you are accustomed to meeting. She is the Veela representative to the French Ministry of Magic, and she is coming directly from a session. The Veela part of her will be in ascendance, the effect can be – disquieting," Gabrielle announced.

"How do you mean?" Buffy asked, but anything else she might have said was cut off by the crack of

Apparition.

"Mother of pearl," Ryuki whispered, staring. Fleur had arrived.

"Fleur, 'zese are some of our Slayer friends, and Willow, a witch. Faith here is partner to the avatar I spoke to you of, and Buffy is her sister," Gabrielle said by way of brief introduction.

"This is the subject whose memory has been modified?" Fleur asked, having given a brief nod to the slayers and Willow.

"Oui," Gabrielle confirmed.

"Please excuse me," Fleur said, and everyone moved away from Amy, staring openly.

The resemblance to Gabrielle was obvious, but where Gabrielle was beautiful, Fleur was ethereal. She seemed to be lit from within, her silver hair a halo, her eyes tropical seas. All of them found themselves leaning towards her, wanting to be just a little closer, perhaps to touch her skin or catch her scent more strongly. All of them fancied they could smell her, but none of them could have put a name to the scent, it was simply something that registered in their brains that they interpreted as some sort of perfume, but …

"What you are experiencing is thrall," Gabrielle informed them, "in formal meetings Fleur is obliged to unleash it, so as to remind the others just what Veela are. Fleur's thrall is particularly powerful."

"I have never even _imagined_ that anyone could be that beautiful," Kennedy muttered, unable to take her eyes off of Fleur.

"Tell it," Buffy agreed.

"She's powerful," Willow said, staring like everyone else. "She's not quite human, is she Gabrielle?"

"Non, and neither am I. At the moment my thrall is subdued, but mine cannot compete with hers. Fleur has no match in all the world."

Everyone watched as Fleur stepped close to Amy and took her face in her hands. Fleur whispered something and Amy's eyes snapped open, going round for an instant before assuming a fixed stare.

"This may take some time," Gabrielle explained, "breaking a memory block like this one is difficult."

"I'd tell her anything she wanted to know," Ryuki volunteered.

"Uh-huh," agreed Willow, who was feeling a little tipsy from the combined effect of thrall and a new sort of magical power.

Fleur found the blocks easily, they were quite powerful, and so while Amy wanted nothing more than to give Fleur whatever she wanted she simply could not access the memories. Patiently Fleur probed the barriers, pushing against them to feel them out. It was only a matter of time, the memories were there and she would find them.

"You've seen them make love with each other?" Willow asked Hermione.

"Indeed, and with Gabrielle's thrall in effect as well as Fleur's. I cannot describe it, but their thralls feed off each other and the effect is astonishing. I usually pass out," Hermione admitted.

"I can imagine," Willow mumbled, staring raptly at Fleur.

"No, you cannot," Hermione promised her.

"Dawn asked me to give you a kiss," Gabrielle told Faith.

"Better wait a little, just now I'm not going to be able to stop at a kiss," Faith replied.

"I do not mind 'zat," Gabrielle told her with a grin.

"Glad to hear it, once Dawn is taken care of we'll explore our options. With seven of us there will be a lot of them."

"What are you guys talking about?" Buffy asked as she edged close to Faith and put her arm around her waist.

"Once Dawnie is okay the four of us and Gabi, Hermione, and Fleur are going to play spin the bottle," Faith explained.

"Oh. I'm in," Buffy acknowledged.

Fleur had at last made a crack in the barrier, and she threaded her thoughts through it. Amy flushed red, excited that she might be able to give this marvelous creature what she wanted from her. Once inside the barrier, Fleur set her mind loose within it.

The barrier shattered, and Amy fell to her knees and wept.

Gradually the light that had been pouring from Fleur faded, and she was once again simply Fleur. She was still the most beautiful being any of them had ever seen.

"Did you get through the barrier?" Gabrielle asked. "Do you know the identity of Gourmand de la Mort?"

"I do," Fleur answered, her face grim.

"Well?" Hermione encouraged.

"Narcissa Malfoy."

A/N: Short, I know, but I'm trying to get rolling again.


	19. Chapter 19

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 19<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Reference to incest

Word Count: 1350

These characters belong to J K Rowling and Joss Whedon

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 19

"Rats"

"Who?" Buffy asked.

"Narcissa Malfoy," Hermione repeated, "she is a very influential woman on the continent. Her husband was a follower of Voldemort, and so were her sister and her son, although it's debatable whether her son was truly committed to the cause. Narcissa aided Harry Potter in the final battle, for selfish reasons to be sure, but she did help. That is the biggest reason they escaped prosecution after the war."

" 'Zee family did lose much prestige, however," Gabrielle added. "Narcissa Malfoy has rebuilt that prestige; she has become quite a popular figure, especially since the death of her husband."

"A rather sudden and mysterious death, some think," Hermione added.

"So what?" Faith asked. "I don't care if she's the Pope's mother, Dawn needs her heart."

"It will be difficult to obtain, she is well guarded," Gabrielle said. "Also, my agency cannot be seen to move against her."

"Does that mean you won't help?" Buffy asked. Gabrielle smiled.

"It means that I must take some vacation time. The true difficulty will be finding the time and place to strike, she travels a great deal," Gabrielle explained.

"I can help with that," Fleur volunteered, "but I must first meet the Avatar. Come, Hermione my love, introduce me to her. The business that remains here is not for us." Hermione took Fleur's offered hand and entered the house without further speech.

"So what now?" Ryuki asked.

"Time to deal with Amy," Willow said grimly, "stand up and take your medicine, Amy."

Amy stood, and she tried to stare defiantly, but failed at it.

"All you had to do was leave us alone, you know," Willow said casually as her hair turned black and the veins covered her face. The assembled slayers and Gabrielle moved back, unsure of what was to follow.

"Goodbye, witch," Willow told Amy, and she opened her mouth wide. Very wide, impossibly wide, and her chest swelled as she breathed in harshly through her mouth. Amy trembled violently, and a dark mist flowed from her like the smoke from burning tires, and Willow breathed it all in. The smoke was shot through with lightning and fire, and there was a lot of it, but Willow just kept taking it in while Amy shook and whimpered.

The last of the smoke disappeared into Willow's mouth, and Amy stared at her in horror.

"Okay, that was even grosser than the memory stuff," Faith told Gabrielle.

"I am forced to agree," Gabrielle admitted.

"Leave us," Willow said in a hoarse voice, and Gabrielle and the slayers departed without a word.

"You took my magic," Amy whispered, stunned at the loss she felt.

"Every bit of it, now and forever," Willow promised.

"I'd rather be dead!"

"Oh, I know, and I don't blame you. That's why I sent them away, any one of them would just love to kill you," Willow informed her.

"I'll find a way to get it back, and when I do-"

"No, you won't. Goodbye, Amy." Willow waved a hand and the toga collapsed to the ground.

Seconds later a rat scurried out from within the pile of cloth.

"Good luck," Willow called after the scampering form as her hair faded back to red and the veins disappeared.

"This is your Avatar?" Fleur asked Hermione.

"Yes, this is Dawn," Hermione replied, "that's Dr. Blake with her; he is one of the finest muggle physicians in the world."

"As good as you?"

"Perhaps better, magic aside," Hermione admitted.

"Dawn, these women, these – slayers, they are worth the risk we would encounter?" Fleur asked further.

"Beyond all doubt," Hermione answered her.

"So be it then. If I sleep beside her I can talk with her?"

"Yes, I'll wake up Ricky and then you can go to Dawn."

"D'accord," Fleur said serenely, her trust in Hermione's judgment was beyond doubt of any kind.

Hermione shook Blake's shoulder gently.

_"Time to go, Ricky," Dawn said with a smile._

_ "Right, any messages?"_

_ "Just let them know that I'll be okay no matter what, and that I love them," Dawn replied._

_ "Will do, sweetheart. I'll see you soon in the waking world," Blake said as he faded out._

_ "I do hope so," Dawn whispered._

"Good Lord!" Blake exclaimed when his eyes fell on Fleur.

"Ricky, this is Fleur, Gabi's sister and our – well…" Hermione hesitated.

"Say no more. It's obvious it was supposed to be that way. You know, if you three ever want to have children, I've been kicking something around for a while…"

"An interesting idea, Doctor Blake," Fleur allowed, "and we should discuss it further once all of this is cleared up. I beg your pardon, but I must now go and speak with the Avatar."

"Of course, I'm honored to make your acquaintance," he replied.

Fleur settled gracefully beside Dawn and closed her eyes. Hermione indicated that he should leave the room, and Blake went into the sitting room where the slayers and Gabrielle were gathered.

"I see he 'as met Fleur," Gabrielle said with a smile.

"Yeah, I have – she's not human, is she?"

"There's a lot of that going around," Buffy put in, "but I have to admit that she has an extreme case of it."

"No shit," Marty mumbled.

"What's next?" Willow asked, walking into the room looking normal.

"Uh, Amy?" Amanda questioned.

"Gone," Willow replied, and that covered the topic. "Anybody else hungry?"

"Always," Ryuki replied, "Rachel, how about you and Renata helping me round up a snack for the group?"

"Sure," Rachel answered, "close your mouth, daddy."

"Huh? Oh, sorry," Ricky looked anxiously at Amanda.

"No worries, love," Amanda replied, "she had the same effect on me."

"No shit," Marty repeated.

_"I think Marty has gotten over you,"_ Buffy whispered to Faith.

_"Good,"_ Faith replied, "_but she won't ever get over the three of them staying at our place when this is done."_

_"Will we?"_ Buffy questioned.

_"I really doubt it,"_ Faith allowed.

"Miko, come," Ryuki said, and Miko followed her happily.

"As I was saying, what next?" Willow repeated.

"We must plan how to take Madame Malfoy," Gabrielle replied. "I know 'zat you are all used to risk, but I must point out that she will have powerful witches and wizards guarding her, and they will be ruthless."

"Then we have to be ruthless as well," Buffy declared.

"We have to be ruthless _first_," Faith amended.

"They will use the killing curse," Gabrielle cautioned, "and only Faith, and presumably Buffy, can withstand 'zat," Gabrielle cautioned.

"No they won't," Willow said calmly, but her eyes went flat and black, and the house shook a bit.

"Per'aps they won't," Gabrielle amended as she felt Willow's power.

_"Hello Dawn, I am Fleur."_

_ "It's nice to meet you, you look a lot like Gabi, but more," Dawn replied._

_ "A good way to put it," Fleur told her, "I am older, and am more connected to our Veela side. You know of course of the risk all of them are preparing to take for you? Including my lovers?"_

_ "I do, and if I could stop them, I would. However if I were in their place nothing would stop me, I know them, and I know your sister," Dawn told her._

_ "Oui, and Hermione as well. Even I could not dissuade them, and so I will aid them. I merely wished to speak with you before we begin."_

_ "Should you fail, should I fade away, will you –"_

_ "That is done, Gabrielle and Hermione already love your Faith. I saw this at once, and so of course I must love her as well. Also your sister and Willow, the love among you is astonishing and the Veela cannot ignore this. Nor resist it. We have much to share in the future, young Avatar," Fleur assured her._

_ "And now?"_

_ "And now I must know what we risk all for," Fleur said in a low voice, and Dawn drifted into her arms._

"The green is subsiding," Ricky said to Hermione when he entered Dawn's room.

"Uh-huh," Hermione replied absently as she watched the flush spread across both Fleur's skin and Dawn's.

"Look there," Renata exclaimed, pointing to a corner of the kitchen.

"Miko, get!" commanded Ryuki.

"Yecch," Rachel commented.

"Very well, Miko, good girl. Please take it outside," Ryuki said as she opened the kitchen door.

Miko trotted happily out the door with her prize.


	20. Chapter 20

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 20<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG 13<p>

Warnings: None

Word Count:2250

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

A/N: I promise, it's gonna hit the fan soon… Also, sorry for not replying to reviews, but it's taking like a half hour to post. My connection truly sucks.

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 20

"Honors Earned"

_"I have never experienced magic like yours," Fleur told Dawn as their lips parted._

_ "You're a bit different in my experience as well," Dawn replied._

_ "Magic brings us all together, you and yours, and me and mine. Never has there been a merging of such power," Fleur whispered._

_ "To what end?" Dawn asked. "I do have the same impression, though. The stream is clearly happy that we are together."_

_ "We may never know the answer to that, perhaps magic is simply indulging itself," Fleur shrugged._

_ "Thank you," Dawn said, and Fleur required no explanation._

_ "You are most welcome, my new friend. I look forward to the future for all of us, but now we must prepare for the final strike."_

_ "Straight for the heart," Dawn told her._

_ "That is the only way," agreed Fleur. _

Fleur touched Dawn's cheek and faded away.

"We must move quickly," Fleur told Hermione. "The blending of our magic has gained us some time, but the Avatar will return to the stream soon."

"What do we do, then?" Hermione asked.

"What needs to be done, as Gabrielle puts it," Fleur said with a bitter smile. "Get everyone together, please." Hermione hastened from the room.

"Hermione tells me that you are a gifted physician, Dr. Blake," Fleur told him. Blake shrugged.

"I try, and please call me Ricky. Anybody that helps my girls is a friend of mine."

"Thank you, Ricky, do me the honor of calling me Fleur, please. I am glad that you are here; some of these women will likely be injured in this adventure.

"They often are," Blake replied. "With Hermione's help we'll take good care of them. Frankly, with Buffy, Faith, and Gabrielle going in I don't think the bad guys will have much time to do anything. Not to mention Willow."

"I hope so, I must go now," Blake watched Fleur leave and then turned his attention to Dawn and checking the available supplies and equipment. He was scared for them, but he could do nothing to help beyond being prepared to treat any injuries.

"Everyone is here, Fleur," Hermione informed her when she entered the sitting room. There were slayers on every surface, and Gabrielle stood with Buffy, Faith, and Willow.

"The witch we are seeking is very powerful and influential," Fleur began. "I believe that I can arrange a meeting with her, and although I can suggest a location she will doubtless want to meet at a place of her own choosing. Once I know the place and time the planning will be largely up to you. I will give what assistance I am able to, but such a project is not in my area of expertise."

"It is, however, in mine," Gabrielle said. "I have talked with Buffy and Faith, and I know 'zat you are not accustomed to fighting humans, especially witches and wizards. I am. We have already worked on avoiding and blocking spells, and we shall do more practicing before we go in. However, now is the time for all of you to examine whether or not you are prepared to take a human life. It will likely be necessary, and in any case may be unavoidable. The people we shall face are extremely dangerous, and I promise you 'zat they will not hesitate to kill you."

"Be honest about it," Buffy cautioned them. "Nobody is going to hold anything against you if you opt out. You're Slayers, you were created to protect humans, not to kill them. A few of us are going to have to stay here anyway, so it won't cut us short."

"This will be different," Faith added, "and like Buff said, killing people isn't in our job description." Faith looked at her hands for a moment. "It's not like killing demons, ladies. No matter how much they might deserve it or how necessary it is. But people can kill you just as dead as demons can, and hesitating could cost you your life or the life of another of your team. Take some time to think it over, and also like Buffy said, no blame to you for having the guts to step aside on this one."

"I will contact Madame Malfoy from my office," Fleur told them, "it must seem like a formal invitation."

"Fine, see you soon," Hermione told her. Gabi and Hermione kissed Fleur goodbye and Fleur flooed away, startling several of the slayers.

"Training time," announced Buffy, and she led the way to the back garden.

"Hermione, will you assist us?" Gabrielle asked. "If 'zey can block your stunning spells the death eaters will be no problem."

"Of course," Hermione agreed.

"Ummmm," Willow said.

"Yes?" Gabrielle answered.

"I know it's a good idea to train them how to handle the magic they might face, but I'm not really interested in a fair fight. I intend to smother any magic there but my own. I think that will save lives on both sides, although I admit that I'm not too concerned about the bad guys," Willow explained.

"You can do that?" Hermione asked, clearly surprised.

"I believe so, much like I took Amy's magic, I can absorb any magic used in my presence," Willow explained.

"Can you keep from absorbing my magic at the same time?" Gabrielle asked.

"No. If this works, and I believe that it will, any magic used will become mine. I might be able to return it afterwards, but I'm not sure."

"Can we test this?" Hermione asked.

"If you have something using that type of magic that you can spare, sure," Willow answered.

"Here is Masois' wand," Gabrielle offered, "he has no further need of it." She produced the wand from a pocket. "But how do we use it without risking our own magic?"

"I can do a variant of the spell used on the dart," Hermione said after a moment, "I can set the wand to cast a spell when someone reaches a certain distance. I'll use a stunning spell so that if this doesn't work you won't be killed or injured badly. But it will hurt if it doesn't work, Willow."

"Fair enough, but make it a strong one."

Hermione set the wand on a table and waved everyone back, then she muttered an incantation and the wand took on a glow.

"Try it whenever you're ready, Willow. The spell will trigger at a distance of about five feet," Hermione told her.

"Right, you should move away from me, and whatever you do don't use any magic until I tell you it's okay." Willow flowed into her dark goddess form. A black cloud hovered over her, and she walked towards the wand. A jet of red light shot from it headed straight for Willow, but it turned into the cloud. There was a clap of thunder and the cloud grew larger. Willow smiled.

"I take it the test was successful?" Hermione asked.

"Yes, it was quite invigorating."

"But 'zis was only one stunning spell, will it work with multiple curses, some of them unforgivables?" Gabrielle asked.

"The more power used against me, the stronger I will get," Willow explained. "Check the wand." Hermione did.

"It's useless, no more than a bit of ash now," Hermione reported.

"This should be easy, then," Gabrielle said.

"It will only work on magic, while I'm doing this I could be killed or injured by a physical attack," Willow told her.

" 'Zen we must see that that does not happen. Let us go and help with the training."

"You must remain alert," Gabrielle cautioned the slayers, "even if Willow can suppress their magic, there may be traps, and some of these people are accustomed to swords and other weapons."

"So what are the rules of engagement, boss?" Amanda asked plainly.

"Protect yourself by any means necessary. If they surrender on their own and you can safely restrain them securely, do it, but if they fight, take them out as quickly as you can. Yes, that means kill them. Fight like you have trained," Buffy answered. "We'll worry about the cleanup afterwards. Nobody fights alone, stick to your partner. If one member of a team is injured too badly to fight, call for extraction and hold your position. There will be no way out until the fight is over though; we can't chance Malfoy getting away. Willow is going to shut down any magic but hers."

"Nicolette and I will Apparate any injured back here after the fight, where Hermione and Ricky will treat them. I wish 'zat I could provide more magical transport, but what I am doing is strictly illegal and I can take only someone I trust completely. Also, Nicolette has training 'zat my other team members do not."

"I'll partner with Nicolette," Ryuki volunteered.

"Fine," Faith agreed, "the two of you will help protect Willow. Nobody touches her. Kennedy, Marty, stay close to them, if Nic has to transport wounded you'll take over with Willow. Buffy and I will lead, Renata, you and Leanne have our left flank. Amanda, you and Gabi have the right. We need to keep together; you all know what the target looks like. We grab her and get out as quickly as we can."

"What about after? Will we be able to get out of the country?" Candace asked.

" 'Zee plan calls for obliviating any survivors so that there will be no witnesses," Gabrielle answered.

"What about physical evidence?" Angela asked.

"Not gonna be any," Willow promised, and Angela turned pale.

"I don't think I can do this," Angela admitted.

"That's fine," Buffy assured her, "thank you for telling us. Anyone else have doubts? "

Candace fidgeted and shyly put up her hand.

"Sorry, Buffy," she said, close to tears.

"No apology needed, this way I have someone to look after Dawn, Ricky and Hermione. Thanks, Candy." Candace appeared to be heartened by this. "Ryuki, you need to work with Nicolette while you have the time. Amanda, you and Gabi should practice some too. Faith and I will work with both groups."

"Let's get at it folks, no telling when we go in," Faith told them, "Angela, you and Candace act as the bad guys. Don't hold back, try and find the weak spots. That will help us as much as anything will."

The air rang with the clash of weapons as the teams drilled.

"They work very hard," Hermione commented to Blake as they watched from the window.

"They do. They have to. Do you have any idea when Fleur will have news for us?"

"As soon as she can, I just hope it's soon enough. Fleur was right; we're running out of time."

"I am most honored, Ms. Delacour," Narcissa Malfoy said smoothly.

"You have more than earned this, Madame Malfoy," Fleur replied sincerely. "I so look forward to our meeting."

Fleur withdrew her head from the flames.

"And you will get all that you deserve, you may be sure of that," Fleur added.

"Narcissa Malfoy has graciously consented to receive me at her home here in France," Fleur told the assemblage. "I have told her that she is being given a humanitarian award from the Veela Council and that I wish to speak with her about her charitable work."

"What kind of place is it?" Buffy asked.

"It is a Black family property," Gabrielle explained, "she was born Narcissa Black. It is an old estate, and is well known to my group. The wards are exceptionally strong."

"Do you have a floor plan?" Faith wanted to know.

"Yes, Hermione has made copies," Gabrielle handed a stack of parchment to Faith, who passed them around.

"I can perhaps stun her when you arrive," Fleur offered.

"Non, with the wards in place that would be too dangerous," Gabrielle told her, "within those walls any spell directed at a family member rebounds upon the caster. It would be best if you were not on the grounds. This will have to be an entry by force."

"As you say, Gabrielle, but I wish to be of help."

"You already have been," Faith assured her, "we know where she'll be tomorrow afternoon."

"You can help transport any injured after it's over, once Willow stops draining all the magic," Hermione offered.

"D'accord, I shall do that, then," Fleur agreed.

"We'll show up right on time," Buffy told them, "Gabi and Nic will Apparate Faith, Willow, Ryuki, and me to the edge of the wards, and then Willow will shut things down. The rest of you will arrive by car right afterwards and we'll go get her. We need to move as fast as we can, we don't want to have to hunt for her."

"The teams at the back of the formation will have to cover the rear," Faith added.

"With Willow nullifying the magic, this should be just an ordinary large house," Gabrielle advised, "but it is a very old one, and there are doubtless hidden passageways that do not show on zee plans. Stay alert."

"Let's get some dinner now. We'll do one more run-through before lights out, just to work on timing," Buffy said, and then she could be seen to hesitate briefly. "I want to thank all of you for doing this; it's not really our usual thing."

"Dawn is family, just like all of us," Amanda replied. "She'd do it for us. Hell, she has, more than once."

"Right, people have got to learn not to mess with our family," Ryuki agreed.

"It's almost a shame there won't be anybody left to spread the word," Kennedy suggested.

"But not quite," Faith amended, and the smile on her face caused several shudders.


	21. Chapter 21

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 21<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Violence, Character Death

Word Count:1830

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 21

"Willow de la Mort"

"Hermione, how long will you need after we get back to do the counterspell?" Willow asked.

"I'll be ready when you arrive; I've already done the preliminary work on the potion involved. We will only need to add the heart and do the incantation," Hermione answered. "That is, once I have verified that we have the right heart. It wouldn't do at all to use the wrong one."

They all cast an anxious eye on the globe containing the swirling green mist.

"Rachel being with her seems to help," Buffy said hopefully.

"Yes, but even Fleur's last visit was less effective," Hermione responded. "I do not believe that we have more than the rest of this day to get it done."

Buffy's phone rang.

"Go ahead," she answered it, "that's great, Amanda. It won't be long now; you'll know when to move in." Buffy ended the call. "The troops are in position, they'll join us when Willow takes the wards down."

"Time to flame on," Willow declared, and the house trembled as Willow called on her dark powers.

A storm cloud formed over the house, and they assembled in the yard.

"Thank you for allowing me to participate in this," Nicolette told them, "it is an honor to fight with you." Ryuki squeezed her hand in recognition.

"It won't be the last time," Faith promised, "ready, ladies?"

"Damn straight," Kennedy answered for them all.

"Bon, 'zen it begins, on my mark…"

Buffy, Faith, Gabrielle, Kennedy, Ryuki, and Willow appeared with a loud crack about one hundred yards from an imposing set of iron gates.

Then Willow tore the world apart.

A massive black storm plunged from out of the clear sky, and Willow surged towards the gates born on the winds of it. Red and green bolts of magic shot at her and were sucked into the storm, which only grew stronger with every strike.

"How in the world are we supposed to get close enough to her to go with her, let alone protect her?" Ryuki asked in wonder. Willow looked back at them over her shoulder and smiled. The ground at her feet cracked.

_"The storm will not affect you, just be sure not to use any magic,"_ they all heard in their minds. _"The others are here."_

The cars pulled up and the slayers piled out of them. It was apparent that they all had the same thought as Ryuki had had.

A gesture from Willow cast the huge gates to the ground.

_"Company is coming, come on, time's a-wasting!"_

It was odd to hear a typical Willowism from the terrifying figure guiding the storm, but it did serve to get them moving. Buffy and Faith formed the point of the spear, with Willow flowing along behind them. They sped down the path to the house.

Two men appeared from the bushes to the left of the formation, and the jets of green light from their wands shot into the clouds, causing a double clap of thunder. They stared in shock for an instant, and then tried again, only to discover that their wands were useless. They pulled knives from their robes and charged.

The knives were of even less use than the wands.

Amanda cut one of them in two at the waist while Gabrielle effortlessly relieved the other one of his head. There was no pause in their advance. The ground suddenly opened beneath Ryuki's feet and she plummeted downward, only to be jerked up short by her hair. Nicolette pulled her back onto the path even as she deflected the knife thrust at her and used the heel of her hand to drive her assailant's nose into his brain.

"Thanks, and well done," Ryuki told her.

"You're welcome, I love your hair," Nicollete replied.

Three robed figures came through the front doors, firing their curses in unison, the resulting thunder staggered them, and they had a brief instant to consider their life choices before Buffy and Faith were on them.

A few more figures appeared from doorways on either side of the hall, some of them resorted to weapons when their wands proved useless. One of them had time to wonder just what sort of women these were before he died, and one other of them managed to fall to the floor feigning surrender and try to attack Willow from the rear. He did succeed in cutting Marty's arm as she blocked the strike, but Kennedy prevented him from feeling smug about it by smashing his skull with the back of her scythe.

Most of the traps were magical in nature, and so did not function. There was one mechanical device other than the trap door that Ryuki had triggered, but Faith neatly caught the crossbow bolt that was headed for her.

In the elegant sitting room where she had been preparing to receive her distinguished guest, Narcissa Malfoy considered if perhaps she had made some poor choices of her own since the war. She shrugged and headed for her escape passage, laying her hand on a certain book and muttering an incantation.

The only result was a clap of thunder and a sort of hollow feeling in her chest. She opened an ornate box and removed a small glass sphere. This had been a gift to her from Voldemort himself, in gratitude for her tireless, if invisible, efforts on his behalf.

"If I am to die, I shall not die alone," she whispered as she stared at the blood-streaked darkness within the sphere. She stood facing the door calmly; she had always known that a reckoning would come. At least Draco was not here.

"That is the door to the formal sitting room," Gabrielle informed them, pointing to the right, "we should try 'zere first."

"Okay then, Marty, how's the arm?" Buffy asked.

"It's okay, Ricky can stitch it up."

"Kennedy, stay with her and bandage that. Amanda, you and Ryuki stay with them and watch our backs," Buffy ordered.

"Nic, you may either stay or come with us, as you choose," Gabi informed her.

"I shall stay here 'zen," Nicolette replied.

"Let's go," Faith said, and she opened the door and stepped through it.

"Avada Kedavra!" cried Narcissa, but the curse bent sharply upwards like all of the rest of them had. The clap of thunder shattered windows.

_"My, that was a strong one,"_ Willow commented.

"Why does everybody want to kill me?" Faith wondered aloud.

"You are la Gourmande de la Mort?" Gabrielle questioned.

"I am. Does that give you leave to break into my home and kill my associates ? I recognize you Ms. Delacour, but you must know that my activities as la Gourmande de la Mort violate no law."

"We don't care," Faith informed her. "You cast a spell on a dart that was used on someone we love, and you're gonna help us break it."

"So you mean to kill me?"

"Only incidentally," Buffy told her, "if you can live without your heart, we're okay with that."

Narcissa flung the glass sphere towards the floor at Buffy's feet, but Buffy caught it before it hit.

"What's this?" Buffy asked, but Narcissa remained silent. Willow reached out and Buffy gave it to her.

_"It's death,"_ Willow announced. "_Watch closely, Morty, and let me show you how it's done."_

Willow crushed the sphere in her hand. A thick black vapor spread from the shattered container, Narcissa's eyes flashed in triumph, at least her enemies would perish with her, she thought.

Willow opened her mouth wide and took it all in. Lightning flickered over her skin and she smiled serenely.

"What manner of fiend are you?" Narcissa whispered hoarsely.

_"I'm a Goddess, not a fiend,"_ Willow corrected.

"Come on sister, time to go," Faith said as she grasped Malfoy's arm.

"You dare to lay hands on your betters, muggle?" she hissed in outrage.

Faith slapped her and she slumped unconscious to the floor.

"I would, bitch, if there were any," Faith answered, and she threw the unconscious witch over her shoulder. "Like I said, time to go."

"What about the mess?" Buffy asked.

"There really is a regrettable amount of physical evidence," Gabrielle admitted.

_"I've got that covered, let's go,"_ Willow told them, and they left the room. Joined by the others, they exited Black Manor. The sky was dark, and the storm raged violently above them. _"Wait for me by the cars," _Willow said, turning back towards the gates.

They all watched, fascinated, as Willow stood before the gateway and raised her arms, lightning danced from her outstretched hands into the storm and back. The cloud swelled to match the size of the grounds, and when Willow clenched her hand the cloud assumed the form of a giant fist. The lightning surged anew, and Willow brought her hand down sharply.

The fist drove the house out of sight and smashed in the surrounding grounds along with it. The shock knocked everyone but Willow to the ground. As they regained their feet they saw Willow pouring the storm into the hole, and when the sky cleared all that remained was a patch of bare and level ground.

"Let's go," Willow suggested as her hair faded back to red.

_MYSTERIOUS DARK MAGIC CATASTROPHE!_

Screamed the international wizarding press headlines.

"I don't know for sure what happened," a shaken Draco Malfoy told this reporter during an interview at the scene.

"I was supposed to meet my mother here for a holiday, but when I arrived, the house, the gardens, everything, was just – gone. Of course I called the authorities, and I must say that they arrived very quickly. I am very grateful to the French ministry for responding so well. They sent their elite units and spared nothing in the investigation."

Asked what might have been the cause of the tragedy, Mr. Malfoy heaved a great sigh before replying.

"It is no secret that my late father was a follower of Voldemort and a practitioner of dark magic. It looks very like he must have had a cache of dark artifacts hidden in this house, and something triggered a reaction from them. The ground here is simply soaked with dark magic, so much so that it is doubtful if it will ever be fit to use again. Even birds will not fly over the place. I can only hope that my mother was not here when this occurred, but as I have heard nothing from her, I fear the worst."

Residents of the nearby village reported a violent storm in the vicinity at about the time of the tragedy. The spokesperson for the French ministry task force would only say that some of the dark magic traces at the scene were indeed those of Tom Riddle, who styled himself Lord Voldemort.

Sadly, it appears that even more deaths may be added to his toll, though it is impossible to say who, or how many.


	22. Chapter 22

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 22<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Violence, Character Death

Word Count:1350

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 22

"Heartless"

"Is this the witch who did it?" Faith asked Hermione.

Gabrielle had taken them to the back garden, and Hermione had been waiting for them. Hermione passed her wand over the unconscious form.

"Yes," Hermione confirmed. "Do you have her wand?"

"Here," Gabrielle said as she handed it over to her.

Hermione muttered several spells as she examined Narcissa's wand.

"I state for the record that this is the wand used to cast the spell on the dart used in the attack on Dawn Summers. The magical signature is irrefutably that of Narcissa Malfoy," Hermione said formally.

"Now all we need is her heart to break the spell?" Buffy inquired.

"Yes, everything is ready," Hermione confirmed.

"Buffy, Willow, and I will deal with this," Faith said quietly. "This isn't any sort of fight, and it isn't going to be fun or exciting. She brought it on herself sure enough, but this woman is somebody's mother no matter what shitty things she's done. There's no need for any of you to watch."

"Right," Buffy agreed. "We couldn't have got to her without the help of all of you, but this is slaughter, plain and simple."

"I'll be in Dawn's room," Hermione told them. "I have a cauldron set up in there, just drop the heart in when you have it." Hermione turned to leave, hesitated for a moment, and then went on into the house.

"Is Hermione going to be all right with this?" Willow asked Gabrielle.

"In time. She is not comfortable with 'zis sort of magic, but it is necessary," Gabrielle answered.

"I want to stay," Ryuki said quietly, "everything you said is true, Faith, but I had a hand in this. I'll see it through. This isn't something any of us can just walk away from whistling."

"I feel the same," Nicollette added. "The crime was committed in our territory, it is proper that we witness this."

"D'accord," Gabrielle agreed. "In any case, this is in my jurisdiction. This time she did more 'zan sell knowledge. The evidence given by Hermione alone would result in conviction at trial. We do not however have time for one, and under these conditions my authority extends even so far as this. I appreciate that you want to spare everyone else this task, Faith, but 'zis is my country. 'Zis is my job."

Narcissa stirred a bit, and Gabrielle assisted her to her feet.

"Madame Malfoy, I have irrefutable evidence that you cast a proscribed dark spell that was used in an attack that will result in death unless the spell is broken. You understand what this means, do you not?" Gabrielle asked.

"I do. I will not beg for my life, nor protest that you have no right to do this. I see my death on all of your faces. I made my choices and I shall take the consequences as a Black and Malfoy should, without flinching," she said proudly. "My son, Draco, had no part in any of this. For him I will beg. Please do not seek vengeance against him," she paused for a moment, and her face assumed a pleading aspect. "Please do not tell him what I have done. He carries enough shame for the deeds of his father."

"He shall not hear of this from any of us," Gabrielle promised.

"Thank you. Do it, then," Madame Malfoy said, and she closed her eyes.

A brief instant later la Gourmande de la Mort tasted her own death.

Faith made three cuts and pried open the ribcage, and Buffy removed the heart.

The women stood over the corpse for a moment in silence.

"If you can do it, you have to be able to look at it," Faith said, "Willow?"

Willow gestured, and the body vanished.

"Let's go get Dawnie," Buffy told them.

"I'm sorry for not staying with you," Hermione told them when they entered Dawn's room with their grisly burden. "I just couldn't."

"Of course you couldn't," Buffy agreed. "You're supposed to save lives, not take them. Even for a slayer this wasn't pleasant."

"It's easier in a fight," Faith confirmed. "What now?"

"Just put the heart in the cauldron," Hermione instructed, "Willow, I'll need to draw on your power for this."

"Sure," Willow agreed, and she took Hermione's outstretched hand.

Buffy dropped the heart into the cauldron, and a golden light burst from it.

_"Heart of the enemy, blood of the fallen, make whole that which is broken."_

The light from the cauldron streamed to Hermione's wand, Willow's power flowed into Hermione and sustained her as the wand trembled from the amount of energy flooding it and Hermione's eyes went as black as Willow's.

The veins crawled from Willow's hand to Hermione's and spread over her skin, Hermione too began to tremble, and her eyes rolled over white.

Gabrielle gave a cry, and reached for her, but Fleur had come into the room and restrained her.

"We must trust her, Gabi, this is Hermione," Fleur told her. Gabrielle knew that Fleur was right, and in any case this magic was beyond her.

Now even Willow was trembling, and Faith and Buffy exchanged an anxious glance.

"Screw this," Faith said, "Dawn wouldn't want the two of them dying. I'm stopping this shit right now."

Faith reached for them, but at that instant Hermione swept her wand through the air and the golden light flooded into Dawn.

It was like watching a sponge soak up a spill, the energy that had so shaken Hermione and Willow just poured into her without seeming to affect her at all.

The flow stopped abruptly, and Willow and Hermione clung to each other for support.

Dawn slept peacefully.

"Did it work?" Buffy asked after a moment.

"I would say yes," Fleur answered, pointing to the sphere that had been nearly full of swirling green mist. It was empty.

"Are you two okay?" Faith asked Willow and Hermione.

"Yeah, that was a real rush though," Willow answered. "What was that anyhow, Hermione?"

"The power of an Avatar. The spell pulled Dawn's power back from the stream, passed it through the cauldron and my wand and then back to Dawn. Without your power to support me I would have exploded, I think. The difficulty was in determining what part of the stream 'belonged' to Dawn, since there is really no difference magically. Dawn's power is astonishing, even beside yours, Willow. I've never experienced anything like it," Hermione explained.

"Dawn seems okay," Blake reported. "Still asleep though."

"She will wake when she is ready," Hermione told him, "but the spell succeeded, I have no doubt of it."

"I can feel it, she's fine," Willow agreed.

"I need to clean up," Faith decided.

"We all do," Buffy agreed.

"Follow me," Hermione directed, "Doctor Blake, will you keep an eye on our patient?"

"Surest thing you know, Doctor Granger. Good job, all of you."

"Come with me, Ryuki my friend," Nicollette invited, and Ryuki followed her down the hall.

Hermione led Buffy, Faith, Fleur, Gabrielle, and Willow through her bedroom and into the master bath. There they found an enormous tub of steaming, bubbling water.

"The shower is over there," Hermione pointed, and without further ado she undressed and sank into the water. "Don't be shy."

Buffy, Faith, and Gabi headed to the shower while Willow and Fleur merely disrobed and joined Hermione in the tub.

"Come here," Hermione commanded, and she pulled Willow into her arms. Fleur settled beside them. "I have always wanted to kiss a Goddess," Hermione admitted.

"Come here," Ryuki said to Nicollette. Nic did not have far to go, as the shower they were in was a normal size. "I must thank you properly for saving my life," Ryuki whispered, her soapy hands sliding over Nicollette's skin.

"Come here," Faith told Gabrielle, and she took her in her arms and kissed her.

"I must also give to you your kiss from Dawn," Gabrielle explained after Faith was done, and she did.

"Come here," Buffy echoed, and she opened her arms to them both.

"Here?" Fleur whispered to Willow.

_"Time to wake up…"_


	23. Chapter 23

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 23<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Light girlsex

Word Count:1320

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 23

"Awakenings"

"Oh God yes, Fleur, right there, that's – unnhh," moaned Willow.

"I told you she was the best," Hermione said smugly.

"She really is! My neck has been hurting for weeks, and she's fixed it in a couple minutes," Willow said in wonder.

"Veela are very tuned in to the feelings of those they care about," Fleur explained. "After what we have been through together for your Dawn, Gabi and I feel very close to you and your partners now. I very much enjoyed my time with Dawn, and I so look forward to all of us getting together under more pleasant circumstances."

"I second that," Buffy agreed as she, Faith, and Gabrielle approached the tub. "Great shower, I can't wait for you all to see our bathroom at home, I'm pretty sure you'll like it too."

"Our tub isn't this big," Faith pointed out as she sank into the water. "Oh man, the temperature is perfect too."

"This one isn't this big when it's just the three of us," Gabrielle explained as she settled next to Faith. "Magic is very handy at times."

"I can show you how to do the spell," Hermione offered, "you won't have any trouble with it."

"Does that mean you're going to come and visit?" Faith asked hopefully.

"We'd love to," Gabrielle answered for them all. "Besides, after kissing the two of you I find myself wanting more."

"I know how you feel," Willow agreed, "Fleur and Hermione know where the noses go too."

"Oh, there are much more interesting places for noses to go," Fleur said with a smile.

"What number is the nose thing, Will?" Buffy asked.

"17 through 24, and also 46."

"Willow is very organized when it comes to sex," Faith explained.

"Well, until things really get going," Buffy corrected, "then she's subject to wing it."

" 'Zis sounds more and more interesting," Gabrielle mused. "Hermione, when do you think Dawn will wake, and how long might it take for her to recover?"

"She could wake at any time, as for recovery, we won't know much about that until she wakes up. Physically she should be fine, but it's impossible to tell what emotional effects there might be," Hermione answered.

"She seemed okay when I visited her in the dream," Faith said hopefully.

"We shall see," Gabrielle said. "Fleur, ma belle, would you see what you can do with my right shoulder? I seem to 'ave strained it during 'zee battle. I also broke my second sword this year. I may 'ave to pay for the replacement 'zis time."

"I think I might have an old sword kicking around back home. Tell you what, when you guys come visit you can see if it suits you," Faith offered.

"Thank you Faith, but it is not one of Master Yoshi's is it? I could not possibly accept such a gift, even from someone as close as you," Gabrielle demurred.

"It's not one of Yoshi's, so relax. As for the closeness, once Dawnie is back with us we should see about taking that to a whole new level." Faith smiled at Gabrielle, and started rubbing one of her feet while Fleur massaged her shoulder. Gabrielle put her other foot in Hermione's lap.

"Make yourself useful," Gabi suggested.

"I think seven of us together could be right handy," Buffy speculated. "Willow, come over here and rub something, just use your imagination."

"Hey baby," Amanda greeted her husband, "Marty has a cut that needs tending. Did the others get back yet?"

"Back and done," Ricky replied, embracing Amanda. "Hermione and Willow did the counterspell and it looks like it succeeded. The sphere is empty and Dawn is showing signs of waking up. All of them that arrived by magic are cleaning up."

"I could use a shower myself," Amanda admitted.

"Yeah, you could," Ricky agreed with a grin.

"Nice way to talk about your wife," Amanda replied.

"Hey, I calls 'em as I smells 'em. You're still the most beautiful woman that ever lived, though."

"Liar, I've seen Fleur," Amanda retorted.

"Who ? "

"That's my boy," Amanda said proudly.

"We should get out of the shower, Nic," Ryuki said reluctantly. "Somebody else may need the bath."

"Will you come away with me when your business is finished here? I am already on vacation, and there is much I would like to show you."

"I think I've seen everything," Ryuki said with a grin, "but I really want to see it all again. Especially this part…"

Nicollette leaned against the wall of the shower as Ryuki dropped to her knees.

"Anything you want, Ryu- ohgod – "

Nicollette grasped handfuls of Ryuki's thick hair and pulled Ryuki's face more firmly against herself.

"Ohgod, that's – ahh! I love your hair, it makes such a good handle – ohgod."

"Good thing this house has a lot of bathrooms," Kennedy said as she heard some rather suggestive sounds from behind the locked door.

Amanda managed to beat Kennedy to the shower, but out of courtesy she didn't linger. There were a number of dirty slayers waiting in line, a fact that she reminded Ryuki and Gabrielle of on the way back to Dawn's room.

"You two stop fucking in there and let somebody else get cleaned up, okay?" she yelled after pounding on the door to get their attention.

"Sorry Mandy," Ryuki replied, "but she's just so –"

"I understand, but it's a lot easier for you two to get to know each other in the garden or somewhere than it is for the rest of us to shower in the yard, right?"

"We'll be right out," Nicollette promised.

"Ryuki has a new friend," Amanda informed her husband.

"That's nice, it looks like Dawn is really about to wake, why don't you give Faith a heads up?"

"Right," Amanda replied, and she hastened to tell Faith the news.

"She _looks_ fine," Blake muttered as he looked from the instruments to Dawn's restless form.

"Nice tub," Amanda commented. "Sorry to break this up, but Ricky says Dawn is about to wake up."

Faith erupted from the tub like a dolphin after a fish, and was gone in an instant.

"Let's give her a couple minutes," Buffy suggested.

"Is she okay?" Faith asked Ricky as she appeared at Dawn's bedside.

"I think so, we'll know in a moment anyway," he answered. Ricky made no comment on Faith being soaking wet and completely naked, it just didn't matter. He did note with relief that she had no obvious injuries; he was accustomed to Faith not mentioning things like that.

Faith took Dawn's hand and held it against her cheek briefly before kissing the palm.

Dawn smiled, and in a few moments she opened her eyes.

"Of all the things I might have seen when I woke up, this was the very best possibility," Dawn said quietly.

Faith collapsed on top of her and wept.

"Shhh, it's okay, my love, I'm fine," Dawn whispered to her.

"I'll be right outside, call me if you need me. It's good to have you back, Dawn," Blake told her.

"It's good to _be_ back. Really, Ricky, I feel great. Better than ever, as a matter of fact."

"Glad to hear it. Dr. Granger and I will give you a once over after all the hugging and crying and stuff is done," Blake told her, and he left the room, closing the door behind him.

"Well?" Buffy asked. Buffy and the others had taken time to dress, and the witches among them had dried everyone off.

"She seems fine, Faith came a little unglued, but in a good way," Blake reported.

"All of her vitals are normal, then?" Hermione asked him.

"Straight across; she says she feels better than ever, and I believe her. It's obvious that she's in perfect health, but I have to tell you all that Dawn has changed a little."


	24. Chapter 24

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 24<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: Mild R<p>

Warnings: Extremely light girlsex

Word Count:1000

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 24

"Appearances"

"How do you mean, 'Dawn has changed a little'?" Buffy demanded.

"Well, for one thing, she teleported Faith into the room," Blake replied.

"That's not possible," Willow said flatly, "Dawn even explained to me _why_ that's not possible."

"She was moving faster than anyone I 'ave ever seen when she left the bath," Gabrielle offered.

"I know how fast Faith is. Faith is a daughter to me, and I would gladly die for Faith, but believe me when I say that when she appears soaking wet and naked out of thin air right in front of me, I notice, okay?" Blake said emphatically.

"He has a point," Amanda admitted.

"Apparently Dawn has decided that it _is_ possible," Blake said further. "What's more, she wasn't even fully awake when she did it."

"Fuck!" exclaimed Willow.

"They may be," Ricky surmised, "I really think that Dawn sensed that Faith was on her way and just helped things along. There is no way to describe how much those two love each other, and Dawn –"

"Dawn what, dammit?" Buffy insisted.

"It's like standing next to a power station; it makes the hairs on your arms stand on end and feels a bit like spiders crawling on you or something."

"That could be bad," Willow said quietly.

"Or really good," Fleur suggested, "it sounds to me as if her power has increased greatly. Did you not say that she was getting stronger, Willow?"

"Yes, but-"

"We'll find out soon enough. I still think we have to give them some time alone. We'll deal with whatever change there is," Buffy decided.

"Should we call Giles?" Kennedy asked.

"And tell him what? That we cut the heart out of a witch but we still don't know really how Dawn is?" Willow asked.

"That might not be the best idea," Ricky said, "and I really think Dawn is fine, physically. Doctor Granger can do a magical assessment when there's time. They won't keep us waiting longer than they need to."

"Are you really okay, baby?" Faith asked through her tears.

"I really am, love, now that you're here and I can feel your skin on mine. I wasn't in a bad place, but having you naked in my arms is better than anything. Here, let's get rid of this gown… mmm, _now_ everything is perfect," Dawn declared.

"We need to let Buff and Will know you're okay," Faith reminded her.

"Of course we do, but we can be selfish for another minute or so. I want a proper kiss first."

Faith wiped the tears from her eyes and then took Dawn's face in her hands; she kissed the closed eyes softly and then trailed kisses down her neck, across her left breast, over her ribs, and down her hipbone. She kissed the inside of her thigh, her calf, and her toes. She kissed Dawn's lower lips and briefly thrilled to the feeling of Dawn's fingers in her hair before she kissed her way back up Dawn's right side, finishing up with a light peck on the end of her nose.

"Look at me, Dawn," Faith whispered hoarsely, and Dawn's eyes drifted open.

Faith gasped.

"What?" Dawn asked hurriedly.

"Your eyes – they're _green_!" Faith exclaimed.

"Really?"

"Really, but they're still your eyes, and they're still beautiful," Faith assured her.

The green eyes fluttered closed as their lips met, and the days of fear and blood were washed away in tears of joy.

"Think it's been long enough?" Willow asked.

"It's been as long as I can stand," Buffy replied. "You and I should go in first, though."

"Good idea," Ricky agreed.

The door opened, and Dawn and Faith stepped through it.

"Thank you all," Dawn said simply, and Willow and Buffy rushed to embrace her.

"Your eyes…" Buffy said when they finally came up for air.

"Wicked awesome, aren't they?" Faith asked.

"They suit you," Willow told Dawn.

"They're beautiful. You're beautiful," Buffy whispered fervently, "and you're _back!_"

"I see what you mean, Ricky," Hermione said as she looked at the hairs standing on her arms.

"It is a remarkable feeling, much like thrall," Fleur allowed.

"Dawn, do you know that you 'ported Faith to you?" Willow asked her.

"Yes."

"How?"

"I wanted to, and I realized that I could, even though I wasn't all the way awake. Things are different than they were, as far as my magic goes. It will take a while to get settled with it. Sorry about the goosebumps, I'm working on it," Dawn explained.

"Physically, she's perfect," Hermione announced, having returned from checking the instruments. "May I?" she asked Dawn, indicating her wand.

"Sure," Dawn replied, and she stood still as Doctor Granger passed her wand over her body.

"Remarkable. Dawn, your power rivals Willow's now," Doctor Granger pronounced.

"No it doesn't, it supports it, and yours too, Hermione," Dawn corrected. "I can feel all of you, the stream flows through everyone, whether they manifest magic or not."

"I'll call Giles," Ricky said as he reached for his phone.

"No need."

"What on earth- Dawn!" exclaimed Giles.

"Hi Giles, I'm all better," Dawn told him.

Giles swept her up in his arms without asking a single question. Giles had grown accustomed to impossible things in his time with these women.

"I must call Rona and give her the good news," Giles said as he cleaned his spectacles of the tears.

"Wait a minute, please." Dawn asked him. "Is everyone here?"

Buffy did a quick head count before replying.

"Yep, including all of our new friends."

"Great. Just a second," Dawn said, and green fire flashed from her eyes.

"What was that?" Giles asked.

There was a knock on the door.

"Let your wife in, Giles," Dawn said with a grin.

Anxious glances were exchanged, but Giles decided that the best course was to do as Dawn asked, and he went and opened the door.

"Rona!" exclaimed Giles.

"Yeah, now can one of you explain how an entire house just appeared on the lot next to ours?"


	25. Chapter 25

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 25<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: Mild R<p>

Warnings: Some Girlsex, Incest

Word Count:1300

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 25

"Thrall and Steam"

"Dawn, you 'ported a _house?_" Willow asked, stunned.

"A house full of people, no less," Giles added.

"And weren't you worried about doing a Wicked Witch on somebody?" Buffy questioned further.

"It's easier to teleport people when they are in something. I just port the object as I sense it, which includes everything in it. As for squishing somebody, I let the stream bring me the feel of the landing zone so I knew nothing was there. I knew this lot was prepped for building, so…" Dawn explained with a shrug.

"You don't even look out of breath," Willow commented.

"I'm not. I don't have to use my own power to do this anymore. Being immersed in the stream as long as I was has given me a constant access to it, I just let the stream carry the things I teleport. It's different, and it doesn't cause disruption like conventional 'porting does."

"Didn't feel a thing," Rona assured them. "I looked up from my computer screen and there was a house next door. I figured that meant Dawn was okay. Come here, you!"

Rona gave Dawn a slayer hug.

"You feel stronger," Rona commented.

"It's a side effect, I think. I don't know if it will last," Dawn told her.

"Check out her peepers," Faith suggested with a grin.

"Damn! Wicked, Dawnie," Rona exclaimed in admiration.

"I assume that you can put our house back?" Hermione asked, clearly still in a bit of shock.

"Absolutely, won't even crack the plaster."

"Is there anything we need to take care of right away, Rona?" Buffy asked her.

"Not a thing, boss. We cleaned out a little nest yesterday, only three vampires. Not as tidy as the first team but we got it done and none of ours got hurt."

"That's a win in my book," Faith commented, "good job, Rona."

"Cool. What day is it?" Buffy inquired.

"Monday," Giles answered.

"Faith, what say we take a few days off, all of us? We need to decompress, and we should show our guests around. That is, if you can stay for a while," Buffy addressed this last to Hermione, Gabrielle, Fleur, and Nicollette.

"I have nothing planned until next week," Fleur responded.

"I can clear my schedule easily enough. Joanna can cover my rounds; I covered for her last month. I'd really like to spend some time here," Hermione admitted.

"Nicollette and I are already on leave. Nic, do you want to be a tourist for a while?"

"Indeed, I would very much enjoy doing some sightseeing," Nicollette replied, but she was staring at Ryuki when she said it.

"Oh! How did you get the house past the wards?" Hermione asked suddenly.

"The wards can't detect this sort of magic. I don't think you need to worry about that too much, nobody else can do it like this," Dawn explained.

" 'Ow can you be sure?" Gabrielle questioned her.

"I would sense it if there was another connected to the stream like I am now."

"And there isn't anybody else quite like Dawn," Buffy added. "Okay ladies, thanks for your help, I'm proud of you. Faith and I will handle the debrief with Giles. Go have fun. We'll have a short meeting at breakfast to go over the revised schedule for this week."

"Thank you all again," Dawn told them, and tears started from the green eyes.

The slayers hugged her in turn and went to their own places. There were a lot of naps taken that day, with the release of the tension, fatigue asserted itself.

"Shoot, I forgot about the cars," Blake said. "Is there any way someone can get through your wards to pick them up, Hermione?"

"Where do you want them?" Dawn asked.

"This is a wonderful bathroom," Hermione exclaimed. "Why didn't we think of more sinks and toilets?"

"There are usually just two of us there," Fleur replied, "but we should perhaps correct this oversight."

" 'Zee tub is more modern than ours," Gabi commented.

"It's pretty nice, but it's only big enough for six comfortably," Willow said.

"We occasionally have a guest," Buffy said in answer to the unspoken question, "you'd like Doctor Petty. She's sweet. Literally."

"I look forward to meeting her. Now then, let's see about enchanting this tub to accommodate guests," Hermione suggested as she took out her wand. "There, the tub will accommodate as many as you like. I also charmed the water to stay fresh and to adjust automatically to anyone's desired temperature. That will save power."

"Also, it is very convenient," Fleur added.

"I could use a soak, anybody else?" Faith asked.

"Me too, it looked like a river where I was, but it's not really wet and it's not hot at all," Dawn agreed.

"I'll take care of that for you," Buffy promised, and she set about undressing Dawn.

"A marvelous idea, come and help me undress, Gabi," Fleur requested.

"You two go ahead," Faith told Willow and Hermione, "I'll be happy watching for a while. Buffy and Dawn together always does it for me, and I'll bet Fleur and Gabi can start a fire in your panties – fuck…"

Fleur and Gabrielle were locked in a nude embrace, and as they kissed their thralls merged and spilled over everyone. Their skin, so fair and so alike, took on a rich golden glow, and the air in the bathroom thickened.

Buffy, however, only had eyes for Dawn.

"I was so scared," Buffy whispered as she took Dawn in her arms.

"I wasn't," Dawn told her, "I knew you would find me, I'm a part of you."

"The best part, I love your eyes," Buffy said softly, staring into the rich green.

"I'm glad; now love the rest of me, okay?"

Buffy slid her fingers into Dawn's hair and kissed her softly, breathing in the scent of Dawn's skin. Her tongue flicked gently over Dawn's lips, and they parted to allow Dawn's tongue to meet Buffy's. Dawn wrapped one of her dancer's legs around Buffy's hips and pulled her closer. The kiss deepened, and so did the breathing.

"They really are beautiful together," Hermione said to Willow.

"Which two?" Willow asked.

"Both of them. So when are you going to kiss me?" Hermione asked her in return.

"Just now," Willow told her, and Willow's hair turned white. "Just now…" Willow whispered, trailing kisses down Hermione's neck. "Just here," she said, and her lips closed on one of Hermione's nipples. "Here too, in a minute," Willow promised, lightly caressing Hermione's pussy with her fingers.

"Yes please," Hermione said throatily, "oh, yes…"

"Little help, Faith," Buffy asked, "I can't turn loose of her long enough to get in the tub."

"Sure thing, babe." Faith lifted the entwined women and gently set them in the tub. In a moment she had done the same for Gabi and Faith, as well as Hermione and Willow. Faith settled into the tub herself, leaning back and sliding down until only her face was above water. Her face grew red as she watched the women making love, and she stretched her leg so that she could run her foot over Buffy's bottom while Buffy kissed her way down Dawn's belly.

Faith watched in amazement as a bubble formed around Hermione's head, and she disappeared under the water in front of Willow. A moment later Willow's knees broke the surface of the water a fair distance apart, and Willow's eyes closed as she moaned something that Faith couldn't quite make out.

Gabrielle was sitting in Fleur's lap, and both of them had their hands busy under the water while they continued the kiss.

_"I could get used to this,"_ Faith thought as she touched herself. _"Kind of, anyway…"_

The air was a heady mixture of thrall and steam; seen from above it was an ever-moving portrait as the couples separated, merged, and combined.

Faith had been wrong. She didn't get used to it at all, but she didn't mind.


	26. Chapter 26

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 26<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: Mild R<p>

Warnings: Ah, none.

Word Count:1150

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

A/N: I had intended this to be longer and wrap things up, but this GD connection is preventing it. Next chapter should zip this up.

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 20

"Felis Leo"

"I want to thank all of you for minding the store during our unexpected stay in France," Buffy told the slayers after breakfast. "Rona, unless there is anything you especially need to go over with Faith and me we'll skip any sort of debriefing. It's obvious things went well, good job."

"Thanks boss, it was all routine here. I'm just glad you were able to save Dawn, I wasn't looking forward to flying coach everywhere," Rona replied.

"I love you too, Ro," Dawn assured her.

"Speaking of saving Dawn, I want to introduce the women who made that possible. Doctor Hermione Granger, Ambassador Fleur Delacour, Operative Gabrielle Delacour, and Agent Nicollette Legrande; yes, Gabrielle and Fleur are sisters. Oh, they're all witches, too, but not the same kind as Willow," Buffy said by way of introduction. "Doctor Granger is going to be working with Doctor Blake on the magical side of Slayer medicine, so be nice to her."

"Gabrielle and Nicollette went with us on the raid," Faith added, "both of them have studied with Yoshi. Both of them know what it's like on the sharp end of the stake, and both of them killed to save Dawn. So both of them are now Slayers, I added their names to the role this morning. I regret to say that they won't be able to patrol with us much, but you can all learn from them, I promise."

Faith cleared her throat.

"Nic saved Ryuki's life during the raid, and not only did Gabrielle make it possible to find who to do it to, she did most of the really hard stuff herself. Ryuki has already taken care of thanking Nic," Faith said with a grin. The glow surrounding Ryuki suggested that she was indeed thankful. "Nic and Ryuki are going to Yoshi's for advanced unarmed combat training. Trust me ladies, Nic is a beast. Gabi, I've been in touch with your boss, and you and I will be going to Yoshi's as well. Yoshi was very happy to hear that you wanted further training with the sword, and your boss was okay with the time off for you both, especially since it's free."

"That is most generous of you both, Faith," Gabrielle responded. "I shall be sure and get a replacement weapon before we go."

"I got that covered," Faith promised her.

"Hermione recognized the magic that was used in the attack on Dawn," Willow explained, "and she came up with the counterspell that saved Dawn. She also used magic that is very dangerous and dark in order to do it. Without her we would never have known who to do it to. Fleur put herself and her career at risk to get us the location of the witch responsible. In short, without these women we would have failed. They are also going to work with me to increase the magical protections here. We have some very good friends, ladies."

"Since Dawn is back to like 400%, we're going to run very light patrols the rest of the week," Buffy announced, "and everybody can pick one day to skip the morning workout if you want to. If something comes up the nest team will handle it, think of this week as a barely working vacation."

"My man here is going to sing at the club on Wednesday, too," Rona put in.

"You're in for a treat," Dawn promised their guests.

"In further news," Giles began, "I have been in contact with Gabrielle's office and in the foreseeable future we are going to establish a branch of the Slayers Council in France. We're getting a bit crowded here even with the new dwellings. Ryuki will be going there after she and Nicollette complete the training at Yoshi's to start setting up. Any of you who are interested in being a part of this please come and see me for an application."

There was a lot of excited muttering at this announcement.

"Be on the field in 20 if you're coming," Kennedy announced. The sound of Amanda arriving for the day put the period to that sentence. The newer slayers had kind of enjoyed Amanda and Kennedy being gone.

Soon only Buffy, Dawn, Faith, and Willow were at the table, along with their new friends from Europe.

"Ricky will be here pretty soon to pick you up, Hermione, but first Faith has something for Gabrielle," Buffy spoke up.

"Something more?" Fleur said with a cheshire grin.

"Faith always has something more," Dawn said proudly. Hermione shifted in her seat.

"Babe, could you bring Gabi's present?" Faith asked her, standing and holding out her hands.

There was a puff of air, and a sword appeared in Faith's outstretched hands. She looked meaningfully at Gabrielle, and Gabrielle approached her and bowed formally.

"May this blade be worthy of you, _Shiruba-Shishi-san,_" Faith said as she laid the sword in Gabrielle's hands with tears of gratitude.

"Oh, that's a wonderful name!" Hermione enthused.

"Do keep it to yourself, Hermione my love," Fleur encouraged.

"Oh, sorry, it means 'Silver Lion'," Hermione announced.

It meant much more than that to Gabrielle. Faith had shared part of her battle name with Gabrielle, and her own eyes filled as she bowed deeply. This was an intimacy beyond sex.

"Let's see it then," Hermione chided. The gravity of the moment was not lost on her, but she was curious to see what Faith regarded as a suitable sword for Gabrielle.

Gabrielle slowly pulled the sword from its scabbard, and as the crimson blade emerged the flames flickered along its edge.

"It is magnificent," Gabrielle breathed, "I have never felt magic of 'zis sort. Where did you – how – is 'zis…?"

"Yup," Buffy told her, "that is the sword our girl Faith took from Ares himself, right after she cut off his hand. Oh, and his wiener, too."

"You won't break this one, Gabi," Faith promised.

"It is too much, I cannot-"

"Yes you can," Faith broke in. "One, I have 'sama' after _my_ 'shishi', and two, this is nothing beside what you gave me and Buff and Willow. Nothing. Without you I would no more have a heart than that damned witch does. We owe you for that, too. Now put up your weapon and kiss me, I'm pretty sure Willow has some numbers lined up for all of us, and I sure as hell don't feel like running laps this morning."

Dawn took them all to the courtyard so gently that no one noticed for a moment.

"They are much alike," Fleur said softly as she watched Faith and Gabrielle kiss beneath the cherry trees, "so gentle and kind, so ruthless and deadly."

"Our lions, we're beyond lucky to have them," Buffy added.

"Come on, let's give them this time to themselves," Dawn said, and the five of them left the courtyard.

They were very gentle with each other, for lions.


	27. Chapter 27

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 27<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: PG13<p>

Warnings: Ah, none.

Word Count:1100

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 27

"A Secret"

"Yoshi has a place ready for you two," Faith told Ryuki and Nicollette. "Gabi and I will be there in a week or so and I'll review your training then. Have fun, slayers."

"Ready?" asked Dawn, and upon receiving their affirmative nods Dawn sent them to their destination.

Buffy's phone rang.

"Hello? Okay, thanks for calling. That was Ryuki, they're fine. That didn't tire you at all, Dawn?" Buffy reported and asked.

"No, using the stream as I can now just doesn't tire me at all. It doesn't cause any disturbance either, but I can still do it that way when we need it," Dawn answered.

"With you not needing to recharge, do we even need any backup for the nest team, now?" Buffy asked.

"I've been thinking about that," Faith said slowly, "and I think we have to start letting the girls handle more nest fights and save Dawn for backup."

"Why?" Willow asked.

"Because unless I'm mistaken, you and Dawn aren't going to be here forever, at least not in your present form. Didn't you tell us that your bodies are running on normal time or something?"

"Oh, right. Yes, I'll have to assume the Goddess sooner or later, and then I'll have to relate to this world differently," Willow admitted.

"I'm going to change too," Dawn told them, "I'll still be with you, but not physically. I'll be able to support your strength, but not like now. Frankly, I'm not really sure what it will be like when I return to the stream."

"Shit." Buffy muttered. "And if the doctors are right, and Faith and I do kind of last forever, we're going to want to do something else eventually."

"We have to get things lined up so that the Council can go on without relying so much on the four of us," Faith summed up. "But we don't have to do it today. I need to go see Ricky, don't let our guests sleep too late. Gabi wants to get in on the training and Hermione and Fleur are going to work with Giles and our witches today."

"Are you okay?" Dawn asked anxiously, for it was unusual for Faith to go and see Blake on her own.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just need to talk with him about something. I won't be late," Faith promised, and she blew them a kiss as she left.

"Faith LeHane, woman of mystery," Buffy muttered.

"She'll tell us when she's ready, whatever it is," Dawn said with a shrug. "I'm gonna go wake up a French woman."

"I'll take the Brit," Willow volunteered.

"Which French woman do you have in mind, Dawnie?" Buffy asked.

"Whichever one I get to first, it's not like there's a bad one."

"True that," agreed Buffy, and they headed to the visiting house.

It developed that perhaps there were six bad women present, depending on your use of the term.

All of them, however, felt very good.

"She's waiting for you at my house, Faith," Blake informed her. "That way you'll have privacy."

"Thanks Ricky, I really appreciate this," Faith told him.

"Faith, I owe you and I always will, but I'm a little uncomfortable keeping this from Dawn."

Faith threw her arms around him and squeezed until he groaned.

"You're the best, Ricky. Let me worry about Dawnie, she'll find out soon enough, and I won't let you take the heat for this. I'm nervous too, but I have to do this."

"Okay, Faith, I kind of have to trust you by now," Blake said in acceptance.

Faith drove the familiar route to Blake's house in a growing state of anticipation. She had been looking forward to this for some time now, and she shifted a bit in the seat of the Escalade as the gates to Ricky's drive opened at the touch of a button.

Faith fairly sprinted to the house, and was greeted warmly by the woman waiting for her.

"Let's get you out of those clothes," the woman said by way of greeting, and Faith grinned as she peeled off her shirt and followed the woman to a bedroom.

"This is a marvelous idea, Gabrielle," Giles complimented. "You are quite right that both the Slayers Council and your organization would benefit from this arrangement. The operation you carried out proves how well we work together."

"It is a natural partnership, slayers are magical beings, and we both fight evil," Gabrielle pointed out.

"And it provides for the future, Dawn and I will move on in time. This way there will always be magic to help the Council. Who knows when another powerful Wiccan will come on the scene, to say nothing of an Avatar," Willow added.

"Quite. I must admit that this does set my mind somewhat at ease. I find that lately I have been very concerned about the future of the council," Giles admitted.

"Dad?" William said as he looked up from the book he was reading.

"Yes, son?"

"I've been reading the Watchers' diaries in the library. A lot of them were kind of stupid, weren't they?"

"I like that kid," Buffy said.

"Yes, William, a lot of them were," Giles agreed.

"I guess it was mostly the Council, though. What made them think they knew what was best for a slayer when they'd never even met them? Much less gone on a patrol, that's just dumb."

"Come on William, let's go get some ice cream," Buffy said as she reached for his hand. William looked a question at Giles.

"By all means, son, go with Aunt Buffy and have some ice cream." Giles watched them leave the room, and he smiled to know that William had such people in his life. "What's next on the agenda?"

"We are all curious about this club where you perform," Hermione said, "all of the slayers say that you're simply smashing."

"That's kind of them, and as a matter of fact I am playing tomorrow night. Please don't feel obliged to come, though you would be welcome," Giles answered.

"Of course we will be there," Fleur responded, "we would not miss it."

"Magnificent, if I do say so myself," the woman said to Faith.

"I have to admit I'm surprised," Faith allowed, "I had no idea it would be this good. You're amazing!"

"I am, yes, but without you it would not be half so good."

"Are you trying to make me blush?"

"I wouldn't dare," the woman promised, "but I'm not quite done…"

A/N: One last cliffie, ;) Sorry for the delay, posting has become difficult to the point of near-impossibility.


	28. Chapter 28

Author: Lash_Larue  
>Title:"Fading Dawn" Chapter 28 and last<p>

Pairing: Dawn/Faith, Buffy/Willow, Amanda/Blake, others  
>Rating: R<p>

Warnings: Language and sexual references

Word Count:2900

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and JKR

A/N: For those who have asked, I think there is one more series in this universe. Now that Dawn and Willow can essentially do anything it's really hard to come up with a credible threat on an ongoing basis, but I do think there is a little more to tell here.

"Fading Dawn"

Chapter 28

"Stunned"

"Yeah Faith, he's waiting for you at the house," Blake told her over the phone. "Are you sure about this? I know you're a grownup, but Dawn and the others –"

"They'll know when it's time, Ricky, but I've got to be sure about this first. This is a big step for me, and I'm kind of scared. If it doesn't work out they never have to know, okay?" Faith replied.

"Okay babe, if they kill me, they kill me. We all gotta go sometime."

Faith's laughter was ringing in his ears as he broke the call.

"I hope I did right here," he muttered to himself.

Faith's excitement and nervousness grew as she pulled up to Blake's house.

"Faith is missing the morning workout again?" Buffy asked Dawn as they warmed up on the field.

"She said she had something to do," Dawn answered with a shrug, "maybe she's going to see Ricky again."

"Yeah, well Hermione was with Ricky pretty much all day yesterday, and she didn't see her," Buffy countered.

"Don't get pissy, Buff. Faith has more than proved herself, she's not like she was," Dawn cautioned.

"You're right, I'm just worried. It's not like her to keep something from us. I'm sorry."

"I need to pay attention here, some of us really are getting older, and I don't want to pull a hammy or something," Dawn told her.

But Dawn was a little uneasy herself.

"Slower, Faith, don't rush it – God, that's great! Okay now, just give in to it, let it go… damn! Where have you been all my life? I've never been with better, never," the man told her with a stunned expression.

"A lot of your life I wasn't born yet, and you're not so bad yourself," Faith panted. "Gimme a few minutes to catch my breath and we'll go again."

"I have to remember to thank Ricky for this," he said.

"I'm not sure how Ricky feels about this," Faith replied, "but he's the best friend I've ever had."

"That's all teleportation is?" Hermione asked again.

"Yes," Dawn confirmed.

"Forgive me, but that's a little hard to believe."

"Yes it is, and that's why you haven't been able to do it yet," Willow told her.

"Hermione can be a bit literal-minded," Fleur teased.

"Yes, well I haven't seen you do much better," Hermione huffed.

"I am content with apparition. Veela do that quite well you know."

"Veela do lots of things quite well," Buffy said with a sly grin, "Chastity was all smiles this morning."

"She's a brilliant physician, it has been a privilege working with her and Doctor Blake," Hermione stated.

"Also, she is delicious," Fleur added, "absolutely remarkable. I have no idea how that is possible."

"It's her body chemistry," Hermione began, "you see, her –"

"Please my love, I prefer to retain the wonder," Fleur asked. "Some mysteries are better when one does not know the answer."

"Like what Faith is up to," Willow injected, "Gabrielle was looking forward to training with her."

"She'll get to, I'm sending both of them to Yoshi's at the end of the week when I put Hermione's house back. Faith will make it up to her," Dawn said staunchly.

Buffy started to say something, but the look on Dawn's face kept her quiet. She had no desire to be sent someplace horrible. Like Washington D.C.

"I know there is no way that I can learn teleportation the way that Dawn does it now, but it rankles a bit not to be able to do it the usual way," Hermione admitted.

"I understand, I'm pretty pissed off that I can't get the hang of that spell you use to make things adjust their size as needed," Willow said. "I'm a Goddess, for goodness' sake."

"It appears that there is more than one kind of magic in the world," Fleur said with a shrug, "perhaps in time we can learn to blend them. Come, let us go and watch Gabrielle training with the slayers."

"She's really something. Kennedy says the only people she's ever seen better are Faith and Yoshi. Come down to it, I'd better get my ass over there and see what I can learn from her while she's here," Buffy decided.

"Don't get hurt," Dawn cautioned, "we're all going to hear Giles tonight, remember?"

"We are looking forward to it," Hermione promised.

"You're in for a treat," Willow told her.

"You're sure that you don't mind me staying home tonight with William, love?" Rona asked Giles. "I don't want to be an unsupportive wife, and we have guests and all."

"It's perfectly fine, dear. I have much more time alone with him than you do, it will be good for you both. I suggest you have him read something to you, he's quite the ham you know, but a marvelous reader for all that."

"I wonder where he got the ham part from? I'm just glad he got your brains. I don't know where he got his height, though. He'll be taller than you are before he can drive."

"Legally, anyway, I'm sure that Uncle Ricky will have him on a track under controlled conditions before he starts middle school. I may be later than usual tonight; Mike said that if things went well he was prepared to stay open. He does hate to run people out of the club."

"That's okay baby, have fun. You don't often get to show off for anybody as pretty as those French girls. Damn, but they're something! You're lucky I didn't see them first," Rona teased.

"I am acutely conscious of how lucky I am, every minute of every day," Giles promised, and he kissed Rona soundly.

"If you're going, go. Any more of that and you ain't going nowhere," Rona promised, her face flushed.

"Hold that thought. I'll dedicate some Barry White to you, then, shall I?"

"You just bring a little Barry home with you. Wake me up when you get here, okay?"

Giles chuckled, picked up his guitar, and left.

"After Lisa's little girl gets here, maybe I'll see if she's up to hatching another slayer hybrid," Rona mused.

"Sorry I'm a little late," Faith apologized to Dawn in their room that evening, "are you ready to go?"

"Just about, your hair is different, it looks great!"

"Yeah, well it had gotten kind of ratty, so I broke down and went to a pro. She cut the ends and put all kinds of stuff in it. I guess it did some good. Thanks," Faith replied.

It did look great, it fell to her shoulders in a smooth silk tide, and it shone like the moon on a mountain lake. Faith had never much bothered with her hair before, and Dawn felt a prickle of unease, but she tamped it down.

"Are you just going to wear jeans? I was going to dress up a little because of Fleur and them," Dawn asked.

"Yeah, I mean what the heck, they've seen me naked, and who knows, there might be a vamp that needs dusting. You go ahead and dress up though, I never get tired of that," Faith replied with a smile.

Buffy, Dawn, Faith, Fleur, Gabrielle, Hermione, and Willow all met in front of the garage to go to the club.

"I'll drive," Dawn volunteered, and they piled into the Suburban.

"This is nice, is it iarmored/i?" Hermione asked, eyeing the thick windows.

"Yup, we inherited it from a vampire that wanted to kill us all," Willow told her.

"And 'ow did 'zat work out for him?" Gabrielle asked.

"About like you'd think," Buffy answered. "It was touch and go a couple times, though."

"It usually is," Gabi agreed.

"I suppose that our dark lion showed them the error of their ways, then?" Hermione asked.

"She had a couple things to say to them, yes. Right, baby?" Dawn prompted. "Faith?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sorry, my mind was wandering. Yeah, you should have seen the old bastard when Buff smiled at him just before she dusted him. Dude couldn't believe it."

Faith lapsed back into silence and Buffy and Willow exchanged glances.

Dawn guided the truck into the employee lot, and parked beside Giles' Lotus.

"That's another souvenir from the vampire," Buffy told their guests, "he was an asshat, but he had some nice rides."

"Hi guys, great to see you!" Britney greeted them when she opened the door for them. "Your table is waiting, and Bill and Ted are here tonight."

"She's kidding, right?" Hermione asked.

"They really need to change their names," Dawn said. "No, those are their real names. They're a gay couple, Faith and I met them the first time we came here, the night I made my move on Faith. Right, baby?"

"Huh? Oh, right! They're good people, you're gonna love them," Faith promised.

Buffy handled introductions when they joined Bill and Ted.

"You girls just keep on bringing in the pretty," Ted sighed, "first round's on us."

Soon enough they all had drinks and were settled in when the lights flashed.

"Just in time," Willow said as she turned towards the stage.

"This first song is dedicated to love, and to the people who share it," Giles said softly, and he began to play.

"He's _marvelous!_" Hermione exclaimed over the applause that greeted the fading notes of the ballad.

"Told you," Willow said.

"Time to pick up the pace a bit, I think," Giles told his audience, and he swung into "Sharp Dressed Man".

"Is there anything he cannot play?" Fleur asked, clearly impressed.

"Not so far," Bill assured her.

"He usually closes the first set with "Freebird"," Buffy told the visitors, "but we need to encourage him."

"FREEBIRD!" bellowed Gabrielle, and the others joined in.

"Can one of you girls give me a hand with something in the storeroom?" Mike asked. By now Mike knew that these women were uncommonly strong. He tried not to think about it, but he wasn't too proud to ask for help.

"I got it," Faith said, "I'm dressed for it. Lead the way, Mike."

"Got room for me and my man?" Amanda asked when she and Ricky appeared at the table.

"Sure, how did you get Ricky to come?" Buffy asked as she grabbed another chair.

"His idea, I wanted to stay home and fuck," Amanda said with a shrug. Ricky blushed.

"I've been meaning to come and see Rupert perform for a while, and I thought this would be a good night to do it, since we have guests," Blake explained. "Did we miss much?"

"He's just about to wrap up his first set," Willow told Ricky, "but he'll do at least one more."

"Oh, good then."

_"If I leave here tomorrow, will you still remember me…"_

Giles joined them at the table as the applause faded out and food and drink orders poured in.

"Thank whoever," Giles said as he lifted the glass of scotch at his place.

"You're welcome," Bill and Ted chorused. Giles smiled at them and Ted's hand drifted up Bill's thigh.

"Didn't Faith come with you?" Giles asked.

"She's helping Mike in the storeroom," Dawn explained. Giles looked over and saw Mike behind the bar, but before he could say anything the lights flashed and then went out.

"Everybody stay seated," Mike called loudly. "This is expected."

There was a rumbling, scraping, sort of sound, and footsteps, and then a piano began to play, followed by a smoky voice that everyone felt in the base of their spines.

_Never know how much I love you;  
>Never know how much I care.<br>When you put your arms around me  
>I get a fever that's so hard to bear.<em>

"Holy shit," Buffy breathed.

"Good Lord," added Giles.

_You give me fever -  
>When you kiss me -<br>Fever when you hold me tight._

"Giles, who –" began Dawn, and then a spotlight fell on the singer. 

_**Fever**_ -

_In the morning -  
>Fever all through the night.<em>

Faith stood by the piano; she was wearing a scarlet cashmere dress with a high neck and long sleeves that hooked over her thumbs. It reached well below her knees and covered all of her while concealing absolutely nothing. Her hair shone in the spotlight, and the look she sent her lovers had the whole house squirming in their seats.

_Sun lights up the daytime -  
>Moon lights up the night.<br>I light up when you call my name  
>'Cause I know you're gonna treat me right.<em>

_You give me fever -  
>When you kiss me -<br>Fever when you hold me tight.  
><em>_**Fever**__ -  
>In the morning -<br>Fever all through the night._

"I have never heard this song done like this," Giles whispered, "it's stunning."

It was, literally. Buffy, Dawn, and Willow were absolutely slack-jawed in amazement, Fleur, Gabrielle, and Hermione were merely impressed and aroused.

_Everybody wants the fever,  
>That is something you all know.<br>Fever isn't such a new thing  
>Fever started long ago.<br>_

_You give me fever -  
>When you kiss me -<br>Fever when you hold me tight.  
><em>_**Fever**__ -  
>In the morning -<br>Fever all through the night._

"I'm in love all over again," Dawn said hoarsely. Faith smiled at her and she felt a growing wetness between her thighs.

_You know I love my baby,_

_And you know she feels the same._

_When she puts her arms around me,_

_You know she's gonna start to flame._

_I give you fever -  
>When we're kissin' -<br>Fever with that flame in you.  
><em>_**Fever**__ -  
>I'm a fire,<br>Fever yeah I burn for you._

Faith blew a kiss towards the table where her lovers were seated, and nobody noticed when a mesmerized Doctor Chastity Petty joined the party.

_You give me fever -  
>When you kiss me -<br>Fever when you hold me tight.  
><em>_**Fever **__ -  
>In the morning -<br>Fever all through the night.  
><em>

_Now you've listened to my story,  
>Here's the point that I have made.<br>I was born to give her fev-er  
>Be it fahrenheit or centigrade.<br>I give you fever,  
>When you kiss me.<br>Fever if you live, you learn.  
><em>_**Fever**__ - till you sizzle -  
>What a lovely way to burn,<br>What a lovely way to burn._

The spot went out, and the room erupted. When the house lights came up the stage was empty and there wasn't a dry seat in the house.

"Giles, did you know about this?" Buffy demanded.

"No, I had no idea at all. I had never heard Faith sing so much as a note," a flabbergasted Giles answered.

"She sang to Dawn once over in France, but she was crying and stuff so we couldn't really hear her voice," Willow pointed out.

"She didn't do _that_ on the spur of the moment. Mike!" yelled Buffy, and Mike came over to them. "When did this get set up?"

"Faith came by last night and said she wanted some stage time, and I helped her set things up. I didn't know she could sing like that, but I'm not going to say no to Faith. A truck brought the piano and she moved it into the back. I sure hope she'll come back and sing some more, though. I gotta get back to the bar, I'll send another round over on the house, you folks are good for business."

"That was the sexiest thing I have ever seen. Ever." Hermione declared.

"I am forced to agree," Fleur said, shaking herself a bit, "it seems there is also more than one kind of thrall."

"She's mine…" Dawn whispered in wonder.

"Ours too," Buffy insisted, "but yeah, you found her."

"I want to know how she managed this," Giles declared, "an arrangement like that doesn't just happen."

"Neither does a dress like that," Chastity added, "that thing didn't come off a rack. I haven't seen anything in that class since Amanda's wed-"

All eyes turned to Richard Blake.

"I didn't know what she was up to, exactly," he pleaded, "she said she wanted a sexy dress and a good piano player. It's Faith, I did what I could, and she made me promise to keep quiet. I knew you'd want to know something was up with her, but I promised."

"I assume that Vera handled the dress, but who's the piano player? They're really good," Amanda asked.

Blake mumbled something.

"Beg pardon, Richard?" Giles said.

"Billy Joel," Blake sighed.

"You can get Vera Wang to make a dress for you and get Billy Joel to play with a friend of yours," Ted asked, "are you sure you're straight?"

"Not really, he's got this kind of dogleg to the right, which is one reason I wanted to stay home and fuck," Amanda answered, "but after this it will be even better, so I'm glad we came."

"Oh dear God…" muttered Blake, and he hid his face in his hands.

Mercifully, the house lights blinked and then went out, and in a moment the spotlight fell on a smiling Faith. She nodded to the piano man, and a familiar melody filled the air.

_When the night, has come,_

_And the land is dark._

_And the moon – is the only light we'll see –_

_No I won't be afraid_

_Oh, I won't be afraid_

_Just as long as you stand, stand by me…_

_So darling, darling_

_Stand by me_

_Oh-oh stand by me…_

Fin

A/N: "Fever" was written by Otis Blackwell and Eddie Cooley. It has been covered and rewritten by singers from Peggy Lee to Adam Lambert and Lady Gaga, and is usually performed in an upbeat jazz tempo. Little Willy John did the first and I think purest version, you can find it on youtube. Faith's rendition was slower and more personal, as I imagine it. I monkeyed with the lyric some myself, it's usually heterocentric, and I'm Ec-centric.

"Stand By Me" of course belongs to Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller, and Ben E. King.


End file.
